Able Aerospace Services, a Textron Inc. company, has completed a significant expansion with the opening of the Able Maintenance Center (AMC). The AMC grows Able’s industry presence with a full suite of rotorcraft airframe services including maintenance, inspections, airframe repair, avionics upgrades and paint.
Combined with Able’s already world-leading, on-site maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) and parts solutions — which includes more than 10,000 Federal Aviation Administration-approved repairs and a large rotable exchange inventory — the AMC is positioned to become one of the world’s most comprehensive, one-stop helicopter maintenance centers for local and international customers.
“The AMC evolved in the very trademark Able way: We identified a market need and recognized that we could fill that need with our own on-site network of experts and resources,” said Tony Mitteer, business strategy for Able Aerospace Services. “This combination allows us to deliver airframe services in a more comprehensive way than virtually anyone else in the industry. It is a level of tip-to-tail service that exceeds the scope of most maintenance centers.”
The AMC launched with a focus on Bell helicopters but will soon expand its capabilities to include Airbus AS350 and AS355 aircraft. Already, the AMC serves some of the largest rotorcraft operators in North America with solutions that include the installation of mission-specific equipment, upgrades to Garmin glass cockpits, HeliSAS autopilot systems and new aircraft completions.
The AMC is also completing customer upgrades to satisfy the upcoming regulatory requirements deadline for automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) and helicopter terrain and warning systems (HTAWS).
The AMC is part of Able’s 200,000-square-foot headquarters, with direct access to an active taxiway at Phoenix Mesa Gateway Airport in Mesa, Arizona, allowing for a convenient induction of aircraft. Of Able’s 500 employees, 50 are dedicated AMC team members, providing specialized services including periodic maintenance and inspections, airframe repair, airframe completions, avionics upgrades, component exchanges and full paint services.
AMC team members also have direct access to Able’s onsite MRO and approved replacement parts solutions, including extensive in-house capabilities that allow Able to complete more than 95 percent of all jobs on site. Some of these capabilities include electroplating, chemical processing, machining, grinding, NDT testing, hydraulics and bearings services, and painting.
Able provides these services to commercial and military aviation fleets in more than 60 countries worldwide. The Able AMC operates from a broad platform of airworthiness certifications including FAA, European Aviation Safety Agency, Civil Aviation Administration of China, Japan Civil Aviation Bureau, Department of Civil Aviation, Thailand and National Civil Aviation Agency of Brazil, and is an approved Bell Service Center.
