Malaysia is Airbus' third largest market in the Asia-Pacific region, after China and India. The country is a key customer base across the commercial aircraft, defence, space and helicopter product lines. Airbus also has developed a strong presence and extensive industrial partnerships with Malaysia, bringing multiple benefits to the country’s economy.
The company’s operations include a Customer Services engineering centre, a 100%-owned maintenance and overhaul facility and the regional hub for its helicopters business. Altogether Airbus directly employs some 300 people in Malaysia.
Malaysia is also the largest supplier base for Airbus in South East Asia, with its aerospace firms producing aerostructures and components across the company’s product line.
Commercial Aircraft
Airbus is the leading supplier of civil aircraft to Malaysia, with a total of over 270 aircraft currently in service and close to 400 on order for future delivery. The aircraft are flying across the networks of AirAsia and Malaysia Airlines, on everything from short domestic flights to the longest commercial route out of the country, linking Kuala Lumpur to London.
Helicopters
Over 80 Airbus helicopters are in service in the country in the military, civil and para-public segments.
Airbus Helicopters Malaysia, located at Subang Airport near Kuala Lumpur, features a completion and delivery centre and is the company’s regional hub for sales support and MRO services.
Subang also is the location for a helicopter training centre, which houses the region’s only simulators for the H225 product line, as well as a second simulator for the AS365 Dauphin.
Defence
The country was the first export customer for the latest generation A400M airlifter. Four aircraft are now in service with the Royal Malaysian Air Force, which are deployed on various missions including support for humanitarian work in the region.
Space
Airbus has been providing space imagery to Malaysia since 1998 and has provided two communications satellites under the MEASAT brand, launched in 2014 and 2021.
Industrial Partnerships
Malaysia is one of Airbus’ main industrial partners in Asia. Every Airbus civil aircraft flying across the globe today, as well as the A400M, has parts produced in Malaysia.
Top Malaysia suppliers to Airbus include CTRM, SME Aerospace and Spirit Aerosystems Malaysia.
Airbus is a founding partner in the Aerospace Malaysia Innovation Centre (AMIC) alongside the Malaysian government, CTRM and Rolls-Royce. AMIC encourages aerospace research and technology activities in areas including sustainable aviation and the MRO sector.
Sepang Aircraft Engineering (SAE)
SAE is a fully-owned subsidiary of Airbus. It specialises in the repair and overhaul of commercial aircraft, engines and components. SAE has two hangars with a combined floor area of some 50,000 square metres and is able to accommodate up to eight aircraft at any one time for major maintenance checks.
Sepang Aircraft Engineering (SAE), a maintenance, repair and overhaul centre based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, had been partially owned by Airbus since 2011 before becoming a fully-owned subsidiary in October 2017 following Airbus’ acquisition of the centre’s remaining shares
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