> Eurocopter China Co. Ltd.
A Chinese Company in China

On 29 December 2006, Eurocopter China Co. Ltd was officially declaredopen for business. Rotor Journal presents the very latest Eurocoptersubsidiary.


DR
In late 2006, the JinHui General Aviation company signed an agreement with Eurocopter and COHC Gamec for the development of maintenance capacities in Shanghai.

Eurocopter China is the first wholly foreign-owned enterprise(1) of a commercial nature to be set up in the aeronautical sector in China.
Based in Shanghai, the company’s brief is to market the civil range of Eurocopter products and services, and establish a nation-wide distribution and support network to accompany the development of the helicopter in this vast country.

“Eurocopter China was created largely thanks to the help and support of the Shanghai Government,” explains Stéphane Chassagnevirol, the person in charge of this project at Eurocopter. “Shanghai is a lead region in the economic development of China, and we plan to develop training and maintenance capabilities here.”
In terms of maintenance, Eurocopter China is backed up by the Group’s logistics platform in Hong Kong and COHC Gamec(2), based in Shenzhen, the only CAAR 145 and JAR 145 approved center in China. “Eurocopter already has a lot of legitimacy in China because of the partnerships and co-developments we have set up with the Chinese over the last 30 years. Now, Eurocopter has entered a new era by becoming Chinese,” continues Mr. Chassagnevirol.

“We are now a solutions provider, working within a dynamic of developing the use of the helicopter in liaison with the Chinese authorities, and much work still needs to be done in this sector in China.”

(1) The law authorizing this type of company in China dates from December 2004
(2) Joint-venture created in 2002 between COHC (51%), Eurocopter (21%), Samwell Aviation (15%), and Bristow (13%).


_AUTHOR: MONIQUE COLONGES

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THE CHINESE CONUNDRUM

While experts predict that within 10 to 15 years the Chinese market will be one of the most important in the world, the use of the helicopter in major cities poses problems.
The dearth of infrastructures, maintenance centers, pilots, mechanics, and adequate regulations acts as a brake on the development of the helicopter.
However, the use of the helicopter for medical, law enforcement, and fire fighting missions is becoming increasingly necessary on the eve of the Shanghai Universal Exhibition in 2010.