Tianjin Helicopter Industrial Base

On 08 January 2009, China Aviation Industry Corporation and Tianjin Municipal People's Government signed "Cooperation Agreement on Co-Building the Core Base for Chinese Helicopter" and "Agreement on Contribution for China Aviation Industrial Helicopter Co., Ltd" and the helicopter R&D and manufacturing base project thus settled down in Binhai New Area. Gou Lijun, standing member of Tianjin Committee of CPC and director of the administrative committee of Binhai New Area, Wang Zhiping, deputy mayor of Tianjin, Tang Ruisong, Gu Huizhong, Tang Jianguo and Li Fangyong, deputy general managers of China Aviation Industry Corporation were present at the establishment conference.

Gou Lijun congratulated on the establishment of the company on behalf of Tianjin Committee of CPC and Tianjin Municipal People's Government. He said that the establishment of the company has injected strong vitality to the development of Tianjin's aviation industry. With this project as the starting point, Tianjin will further expand the all-round cooperation with China Aviation Industry Corporation to co-forge a top-class aviation industrial base across the world. Li Fangyong said that China Aviation Industrial Helicopter Co., Ltd. will be actively aligned to the global aviation industrial chain and regional economic development circle by relying on Tianjin's industrial foundation and talent resources to make more contributions to the development and opening up of Binhai New Area and the development of national aviation industry.

The corporation constructed Tianjin Helicopter Industrial Base in Binhai New Area. The cost will be about 8 billion yuan (1.2 billion U.S. dollars). The new China Aviation Industry Helicopters Corp. Ltd. will include a headquarters, a research and development base, assembly facilities and customer services. Construction site is in the second phase of Tianjin Airport Logistics Industrial Park, on the south of Weiba Road, on the north of Beijing-Tianjin-Tangshan Expressway, on the west of the Jingsan Road and on the east of the Jingyi Road. Construction land of about 130.27 hectares, 196 sets of newly bought processing equipment including helicopter assembly, painting, special and test flight inspection equipment; newly built assembly plant, painting hangar, part assembly plant, special equipment lab, control tower, test flight inspection hangar, parking hangar, special garage, oil depot, warehouse, delivery center, power station, complex office building, staff center and foreign staff office building with total area of 88,400 ?; newly built runway (length 800m and width 45m) and apron; total investment of 98,067.67 million Yuan; mainly dealing with assembly, painting and test flight inspection.

China Aviation Industrial Helicopter Co., Ltd. entrusted China Aeronautical Project & Design Institute and Tianjin Environmental Impact Assessment Center to conduct joint environmental impact assessment of the project. According to the project situation, the assessment organizations investigated and monitored environmental status, analyze the engineering, put forward strategies and measures to prevent or minimize adverse environmental impact and further evaluate feasibility of the project construction from environmental protection perspective. As required by Interim Procedures of Public Participation in Environmental Impact Assessment, the corporation asked for public comments on "Tianjin Helicopter Industrial Base Construction Project of China Aviation Industrial Helicopter Co., Ltd.".

It is reported that 10 helicopters will be assembled in 2011, including 4 AC301 helicopters, 3 AC311 helicopters, and 3 AC312 helicopters. It is expected that the main body of 101 Factory Building in the base may be completed in 2011, the 101 Factory Building will be used as the an assembly workshop for large-scale helicopters of the base, the existing factory building will be used as a refitting and maintenance workshop. It is expected that AC310, AC352, AC313, etc helicopters will be assembled in the base in Tianjin Airport Economic Zone in the future.

Tianjin Airport Industrial Park lies to the northeast of Tianjin Airport. It is 3 kilometers away from downtown Tianjin, 30 kilometers away from Tianjin port, 110 kilometers away from Beijing and connected with main railway. The park is and foreign-oriented economic zone specializing in manufacturing, Logistics, Hi-tech R&D and international trade. Tianjin Port Free Trade Zone is the largest free trade zone in northern China as well as the only free trade zone in northern China and north-western China. Tianjin Airport Industrial Park and Tianjin Airport International logistics Zone are the extensive areas of Tianjin Port Free Trade Zone. The three areas all belongs to Tianjin Binhai New Area, facing the northeast of Asia and connecting with 13 provinces and Municipalities.

The zone gives priority to the development of high-tech manufacturing industries and international logistics industries. The zone is composed of bonded warehousing area, high and new technological industry, business service area and residential area. According to the plan of layout of industrial distribution, Electronics & Information Industrial Park, Life Sciences Industrial Park, Auto Parts Industrial Park, New Material Industrial Park and High-tech Pioneering Park are established here.

The Administrative Committee of the zone administer the area on the aspects of enterprise registration, land planning, construction and so on, moreover, the Committee offer efficient services, such as joint service and through attorney system, and so on. Tianjin Airport Industrial Park is becoming the most attractive area for investment of Bohai Bay Area with excellent geographical location and peculiar advantages of FTZ.

Regarding the development of private helicopters market, an Avicopter official said Avicopter Tianjin Base's main businesses include civil helicopter final assembly and customized modification that allows clients to have their custom-made helicopters. At the same time, headquarters of China Fly Dragon Aviation, a company engaging in helicopter training business, will move to Tianjin Base, accompanied by the establishment of an aviation club that offers membership services to flight-fans.