Singapore Technologies (ST) Engineering and the city of Pensacola have broken ground for the construction of a new hangar, commencing a $210 million expansion of the MRO-company’s facility there.

The Singapore-headquartered company is also considering setting up an Aviation Training Academy there. 

Known as Project Titan, the MOU was first signed in Oct 2018 and will see the development of a 655,000 sq.ft airframe MRO complex, including three new hangars at Pensacola International Airport.

ST Engineering will invest around $35 million in the project, with the rest provided by City of Pensacola, Escambia County, Triumph Gulf Coast, Inc., the State of Florida as well as several other state and federal organizations. 

The first phase is expected to be completed by 2022 and the rest of the expansion by 2024. Once completed, the facility will have two million man hours annually, up from the current 500,000 man hours.

The construction was delayed a year due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The current hangar being built will be able to accommodate two widebody aircraft or six narrowbody aircraft, mainly used for airframe heavy maintenance and modifications. 

“The plan to go ahead with the expansion is a reflection of our confidence in the sector’s long-term prospects and growth as the aviation industry in the U.S. and the rest of the world gradually recover from the pandemic.” Said ST Engineering president of commercial aerospace Jeffrey Lam.