"Several MRO companies are ready to expand, such as Garuda Indonesia through its subsidiary GMF AeroAsia and Lion group," he said in a press release received here on Wednesday.
He said an MRO industry is now also being developed by PT Bintan Aviation in cooperation with GMF on the island of Bintan in the Riau Islands province.
He praised the decision to choose the location for the industry in view of its vicinity with Singapore and being the hub of air traffic.
The minister made the statement during his visit to Singapore Airshow 2016 at Changi airport.
He said the government encouraged the development of MRO and components industries through fiscal and non-fiscal policies.
He said the government hoped the facilities would boost investment and accelerate realization of aircraft maintenance facilities.
Saleh said now was the right momentum to develop MRO industries in Indonesia in view of the increasing air transportation business.
He said both domestic and foreign airline companies would continue to aggressively operate in Indonesia and Indonesian human resources have proven themselves to be capable of serving the industry.
Aircraft maintenance business in Indonesia is considered huge, the director general of metal, machinery, transportation equipment and electronic industries, I Gusti Putu Suryawirawan, said.
He said around 60 percent of maintenance of the aircraft operating in Indonesia is carried out abroad.
"Aircraft maintenance industry is capital- as well as labor-intensive and it needs special skilled manpower," he said.
The Indonesian government has spurred the development of aircraft MRO and components industries because air transportation is also part of infrastructure to support the countrys regions which are vast and comprise islands.
"The steps taken by GMF and other companies including components producers, make us more confident that we have the ability to meet the needs of air transportation industry," he said.
Putu and Minister Saleh visited the pavilions of Garuda Indonesia including the Garuda Maintenance Facility (GMF) AeroAsia, aircraft company PT Dirgantara Indonesia and industry ministry at the Singapore Airshow.
The government praised several producers of aircraft components that took part in the show with their products.
The producers grouped in the Indonesia Aircraft and Component Manufacturers Association (Inacom) included PT Dirgantara Indonesia and Infoglobal Avionik.
Others who participated included Santoso Teknindo, Yogya Presisi Teknika Industri, Pudak Scientific, Bandung International Aviation and Jakarta Aerospace.
Inacom was established by 30 component industries in 2015, supported by the Ministry of Industry. (*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2016
