Wichita, Kan.-based aircraft manufacturer Hawker Beechcraft predicts strong growth in demand for business aviation financing in Brazil over the next five years, based on research it conducted with Corporate Jet Investor of Surrey, England.

Hawker Beechcraft said the results of the study reveals that, in Brazil, 46.9 percent of experts anticipate demand for business aviation financing to increase “dramatically between now and 2017,” and 40.6 percent expect only a slight increase. Only China, said a Beechcraft representative, has higher expected growth.

Looking over a major presence at LABACE 2012—six aircraft from the Beech Baron G58 to the Hawker 4000—Hawker Beechcraft president for the Americas Richard Emry said, “As emerging markets continue to enjoy strong economic growth, business aviation is growing dramatically.

“It is in the Latin America region, and especially in Brazil, that we see some of the greatest potential for increased sales,” he concluded.

Putting an exclamation point on it, Hawker Beechcraft announced yesterday at LABACE that it has appointed Premium Jet Aircraft Maintenance at Afonso Pena International Airport in Curitiba, Brazil, an authorized service center to support the Hawker 125 series and model 400 series aircraft lines.

“We are pleased to announce the addition of Premium Jet as our newest authorized service center in Brazil,” said Christi Tannahill, Hawker Beechcraft senior v-p for Global Customer Support division.

Premium Jet is an ANAC (Brazilian civil aviation authority), Part 145 certified repair station and has more than 30 aircraft, including both Hawker and Beechcraft products, on its Wichita certificate.