Aerospace Giant PTDI Targets Latin American MRO Market
Indonesia is proactively seeking to secure lucrative aircraft maintenance contracts with several Latin American clients, a strategic effort highlighted by the upcoming mission of its aerospace giant PTDI to the INA-LAC business forum in São Paulo, Brazil.
Representatives from the state-run company, officially known as PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI), will travel to the Brazilian city for the Indonesia-Latin America and the Caribbean (INA-LAC) business forum on September 22-23.
Their primary objective at the gathering will be to seek and finalize deals related to Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) services.
The company’s immediate focus is on maintaining the C-212s and other legacy aircraft models originally designed by Spain’s already-defunct planemaker CASA that remain operational across Latin American and Caribbean nations.
The C-212 Aviocar is a medium cargo aircraft designed for both civil and military operators, and its continued operation requires consistent MRO support.
Epiphania Riris Wusananingdyah, a director at the Foreign Ministry, emphasized the market opportunity, telling reporters that “Many aircraft produced by CASA, be it the C-212 or other models, are present here [in Latin America and the Caribbean]. However, CASA no longer does the maintenance work, and this is something that PTDI can do.”
She revealed that Indonesian diplomatic missions have already facilitated crucial meetings with the air forces of Paraguay, Uruguay, Peru, Ecuador, and Suriname, indicating substantial pre-forum groundwork.
Leveraging Legacy Aircraft Expertise for International Expansion
The strategy for PTDI involves capitalizing on its historic connection to the CASA aircraft, particularly the C-212 platform, to establish a firm foothold in the international MRO market following the original manufacturer’s exit from maintenance services.
Epiphania stressed the magnitude of the opportunity, noting, “They need those planes. This is an incredibly large opportunity. If we can tap into the [MRO market], it would cement our footprint in the international aerospace industry.”
While PTDI is a major manufacturer of aircraft itself, with a product portfolio that includes the successful CN-235 multi-purpose aircraft, its focus at the São Paulo forum is expected to mainly concentrate on securing MRO-related contracts.
The CN-235, which has been sold to both domestic and foreign markets, is a product that PTDI co-designed with CASA back when the Indonesian company was known as the Industri Pesawat Terbang Nusantara (IPTN).
The relevance of CASA’s legacy is rooted in its corporate history.
Founded in 1923, CASA ceased operations in 1999 and subsequently became part of the EADS conglomerate, which was later absorbed into Airbus Military in 2009, now part of Airbus Defense and Space.
The long-standing production lineage is key: an aviation news report from 2013 noted that Airbus Military had formally transferred the C-212 light transport production to Indonesia.
Southeast Asia’s largest economy boasts the largest operating population of the C-212s, which IPTN assembled under license in Bandung between the 1970s and 1980s.
This history of production and maintenance has given PTDI an inherent expertise that the Latin American air forces now require.
Indonesia’s Strategic Position in Global Aerospace Maintenance
Indonesia’s ability to produce an advanced version of the C-212 and maintain the world’s largest fleet of these aircraft provides a powerful foundation for its push into the global maintenance, repair, and overhaul sector, using the Latin American forum as a key gateway.
The expertise of PTDI is not solely historical; the company currently produces the NC212i, which is a modern, more advanced version of the C-212, demonstrating its continued technical capability with the platform.
This technical evolution, combined with the extensive experience gained from managing the largest C-212 population globally, places PTDI in a unique and advantageous position to serve the MRO needs of countries like Paraguay, Uruguay, Peru, Ecuador, and Suriname.
For these nations, the Indonesian state-owned company offers a reliable, experienced alternative now that the original equipment manufacturer has consolidated and exited the MRO market for older models.
Securing these MRO contracts goes beyond simple revenue generation; it is a strategic move to enhance Indonesia’s soft power and cement its technological footprint in the international aerospace industry, especially in a region where the CN-235 is also a potential sales target.
The business forum in São Paulo, therefore, acts as a crucial diplomatic and commercial platform to convert historical expertise and current manufacturing capability into long-term service contracts, ensuring the continued airworthiness of vital military and civil transport aircraft for Indonesia’s Latin American partners.
