STANS, Switzerland, Aug. 12 (UPI) -- Pilatus Aircraft Ltd.'s China manufacturing subsidiary opened this month but will not be involved in production of military aircraft components.
The Swiss company's Chinese subsidiary was formed as a joint venture with Beijing Tian Xing Jian Yu Science Co. Ltd.
"The gradual opening up of Chinese air space has brought new importance to civil aviation," said Pilatus, which has its headquarters in Switzerland. "The Chinese aviation authority expects to see average growth of over 10 percent in the Chinese aviation industry in the next few years.
"Pilatus opted to set up a joint venture company with a Chinese partner for the purpose of gaining a firm foothold in this new market. Indeed, Pilatus would not be able to sell its aircraft in China without the new company, of which Pilatus has a majority shareholding."
Pilatus Aircraft Industry (China) Co. Ltd.'s manufacturing facility is in Chongqing. It has an initial contract to supply a total of 50 PC-12s/PC-6s to the local market.
"The PC-12 and Pilatus Porter PC-6 are optimum aircraft for this booming market, and we are confident our products have great potential," said Oscar J. Schwenk, chairman of the board of directors of Pilatus Aircraft Ltd. "China has many small airfields with short runways -- our aircraft are ideal for operating in and out of them."
