Boeing helicopter parts contract for SA aerospace company
Boeing has contracted Mincham Aviation, a small-to-medium Adelaide enterprise (SME), to manufacture four assembly-spare-part sets for the CH-47 Chinook helicopter. Contract terms were not disclosed.
Mincham Aviation was identified during capability conferences organised by the Boeing Office of Australian Industry Capability (OAIC). Established in 2008 as an alternative to industrial offsets to increase business opportunities for Australian companies, the OAIC has already generated contracts worth more than $A26 million for Australian firms. The OAIC works directly with Boeing’s major business units and key supplier partners to coordinate supplier visits, industry conferences, and provide mentoring and training for selected Australian SMEs.
“It’s great to see Mincham Aviation join the global supply chain of a major international defence company,” said Mark Reynolds, head of the Australian Defence Materiel Organisation’s Industry Division. “It bodes well for future contracts, and serves as inspiration for other competitive Australian suppliers.”
Mincham Aviation Managing Director Daryll Mincham said the contract “is the first step in what we hope will be a long-term relationship with Boeing. We initially approached the OAIC with the intention of achieving a contract within three years, so gaining a contract in less than 12 months is well beyond our expectations.”
The Australian Army operates six Chinook multi-mission, heavy-lift transport helicopters. Their primary mission is to move troops, supplies and equipment on the battlefield. Other missions include medical evacuation, disaster relief, search and rescue, aircraft recovery, firefighting, parachute drops, heavy construction and civil development. Boeing builds Chinooks at the company’s Philadelphia site.
