MONTREAL, June 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- ExelTech Aerospace Inc. (TSX Venture: XLT) announced today the signing of an agreement with Caribbean Star Airlines and Caribbean Sun Airlines to provide outsourced heavy maintenance services for the sister carriers' combined fleet of Bombardier Dash 8 regional turboprop aircraft.
Under the initial term of this agreement, ExelTech's Quebec City facility will perform airframe structural inspections and interior and exterior upgrades on eight aircraft. All of this work, with an estimated value of between Canadian $1.5 and $3 million, will be completed in ExelTech's current fiscal year.
"This contract is significant in a number of ways," stated Derek Nice, President and CEO of ExelTech Aerospace. "It follows on a new contract this year from Curacao-based Dutch Antilles Express and a renewed contract from Bahamasair, confirming our position as the leading supplier of maintenance services to the Caribbean region."
"Our agreement with Caribbean Star Airlines and Caribbean Sun Airlines also confirms ExelTech's emergence as a dominant North American supplier of Dash 8 maintenance," added Mr. Nice. "Our growth in the Dash 8 business is mirroring the growth we've seen in the ATR regional turboprop maintenance market. We are now the largest ATR maintenance supplier in the world."
Skip Barnette, president and CEO of Caribbean Star Airlines and Caribbean Sun Airlines, commented on the agreement, saying: "We've had the pleasure of working with the pros at ExelTech on a project basis in the past and have always been impressed with their professionalism and ability to deliver superior results on-schedule and within budget. We're looking forward to taking our relationship to a new level and working closely with them as we continue to grow."
About Caribbean Star Airlines and Caribbean Sun Airlines
Privately held Caribbean Star Airlines Limited was incorporated in Antigua in January 2000. Its sister airline Caribbean Sun Airlines Inc., based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, launched its maiden flight in January 2003. With a total of 19 Dash-8 aircraft, the most recent of which was commissioned into service in January 2006, the combined Caribbean Star/Caribbean Sun fleet is the largest and most modern in the Caribbean. A total of 20 Caribbean destinations are served by the two airlines, which transport some 80,000 people each month. More information about Caribbean Sun Airlines and Caribbean Star Airlines is available at their respective Web sites, http://www.flycsa.com/ and http://www.flycaribbeanstar.com/.
Caribbean Star Airlines Limited and Caribbean Sun Airlines Inc. are affiliated but separate companies. The air service provided by each carrier is operated independently of the other, and the rules applicable to travel on each airline may be different.
About ExelTech Aerospace, Inc.
The third largest commercial airframe Maintenance, Repair, and overhaul (MRO) vendor in Canada, ExelTech Aerospace is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange and trades under the symbol XLT. The company holds Transport Canada, US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) approvals to repair a wide range of aircraft, structures, components and electrical and electronic systems. Aircraft models serviced by ExelTech Aerospace include Bombardier CRJ, Embraer ERJ and Fokker F.100 regional jets; ATR-42 and 72; Bombardier Dash-8 and Saab 340 regional turboprops; and Boeing 737, 757 and MD-80 narrow-body airliners.
With 230,000 square feet of hangar, shop and office space in three facilities at Montreal and Quebec City, and with marketing offices in the US and Europe, ExelTech Aerospace provides maintenance repair and overhaul services to airlines in Canada, the US and 19 other countries around the world.
In 2005, ExelTech Aerospace was recognized as one of Canada's 50 Best Managed Companies in the widely-respected national recognition program sponsored by Deloitte & Touche LLP, CIBC Commercial Banking, National Post, and Queen's School of Business.
To learn more about ExelTech Aerospace Inc., please visit our website at http://www.exeltech-aerospace.com/.
The TSX Venture Exchange Inc. has not reviewed and does not accept
responsibility for the adequacy of this release.
© 2006 PR Newswire
