Blueberry, Lockheed Martin signs aircraft MRO&U JV with Morocco

Sabca and Sabena Aerospace, part
of the Blueberry Group, Belgium, and the Kingdom of Morocco as well as Lockheed Martin recently signed a strategic partnership implementing the
Moroccan joint venture Maintenance Aero Maroc (MAM).

The signing took place in the presence of Mr Abdeltif Loudyi, Minister Delegate to the Head of Moroccan Government in charge of National Defence Administration.

This partnership represents the first achievement in the framework of the recent law aimed at enabling the Kingdom of Morocco to develop a military-industrial and defence activity and to draw strategic and economic benefits from it.

The Strategic partnership fosters Belgian Group international development while supporting the sustainment requirements of the Royal Moroccan Air Force and bringing high-tech jobs and technical abilities within the country.

The partnership includes construction of a state-of-the-art 15,000 sqm Maintenance, Repair, Overhaul and Upgrade (MRO&U) center for military aircraft and helicopters at Benslimane Airport and supports the creation of up to 300 jobs.

Maintenance Aero Maroc (MAM) will be the operators of the new facility, providing an industrial benefit to the Belgian Group through continued sustainment opportunities on Lockheed Martin platforms.

The signing of the partnership is another milestone for Blueberry Group that will leverage on combined know-how and expertise on the C-130 and F-16 and international quality service to extend its Maintenance, Repair and, Overhaul (MRO) network and will provide the Group with new opportunities to create value and develop new expertise on other
platforms.

The Royal Moroccan Air Force currently operates 23 F-16C/D Block 50/52 aircraft that it received from 2011 to 2012, although it lost one during campaign over Yemen as part of the Saudi-led coalition).

“Our Group has 50 years’ experience maintaining, repairing and upgrading aircraft such as the C-130and the F-16” said Stéphane Burton, CEO of the Blueberry Group. “We are extremely proud to start this new partnership with the Kingdom of Morocco and Lockheed Martin, offering high quality
sustainment services for the Moroccan
Air Force and then rapidly to other customers in the region. We are very happy to see MAM joining our international network of MRO&U solutions, bringing opportunities to develop new expertise on other
platforms.”

““We are proud to share our experience with Morocco and look forward to all that we will learn from each other as we manage a robust set of industrial partnerships that aligns to Morocco’s priorities and builds on our history of successful collaboration efforts,”said Danya Trent, Lockheed Martin vice
president –F-16 Program.

“The significant cooperation is the result of several years of evaluation and discussions that will ensure the Kingdom of Morocco receives the
best possible industrial facility, equipment, training and certification to support the sustainment requirements of the Royal Moroccan Air Force and other international customers.”

The Blueberry Group operates in Morocco since 2012 through it’s subsidiary Sabca Maroc which recently announced its investment of more than 180 million Moroccan dirhams (17 million euros) in the construction of a new 16,000 sqm facility which will house Pilatus, Airbus and Dassault
aerostructure assembly line in the
Nouaceur area.

It also participated, in cooperation with the Moroccan Air Force, to the modernization of their Dassault Mirage F1 and Alphajet aircraft. This project represents an additional development of the Blueberry group in the Kingdom of Morocco with the first maintenance activities in Benslimane set to start this year on the Lockheed Martin C-
130.