Contributor - Middle East

Peter Shaw-Smith

Dubai-based DC Aviation Al Futtaim (DCAF) has reported a solid performance over the past year at its VIP Terminal at Al Maktoum International Airport (OMDW) on the eve of Dubai Airshow 2023.
“We’ve seen steady operations with ground-handing activities at a good level, pretty much in line with what we set out for this year and last,” managing director Holger Ostheimer told AIN. “In sum, I think 2022 was probably a little exceptional with the Qatar World Cup occurring and other events associated with it. This year, we’ve been running a steady ship. It got really quiet in August, but we can already see activity increasing again; we will conclude on a positive this year in terms of ground handling.”
On the aircraft management side, DCAF has acquired new jets, including a Global 7500 at the end of last year, while a 6000 and 5000 recently joined, bringing the managed fleet size to 11 aircraft. “We have in our fleet Bombardier, Gulfstream, Dassault Falcon, and Pilatus,” Ostheimer said.
“A particular focus of our activities is the expansion of our maintenance capabilities," he added. "The majority of aircraft under our management also benefit from our aircraft maintenance services. We’ve increased total man count, levels of expertise, materials, and tooling, to be able to do that.”&nbsp;
Ostheimer is eager to sign up more aircraft under management. “A hundred percent—in all areas, of course, but especially on the maintenance side, where we had set out to grow our organization in terms of quantity, manpower, and quality certifications; that has kicked off in the last two years with a change of personnel and a good plan in place that sees us attracting new business,” he said.
DCAF can also use its MRO facilities to generate additional FBO throughput. ”We have the right sort of people in place and the right external stimuli,” Ostheimer said. “We feel encouraged to make those investments in terms of the quantitative and qualitative aspects, and the business is there. We seem to be becoming a lot more interesting to those clients who are choosing us as an option for maintenance work.”
Ostheimer notes that some aircraft are more prevalent than others—especially the Global and Challenger types. “That is an interesting market for us, and one where we would like to win more aircraft maintenance business,” he said. “There is obviously a core market. We’re looking at serving the majority of opportunities arising through the distribution of different types of aircraft across the manufacturers. Most of the resulting opportunities will be Challenger and Global aircraft. That also has to do with the maintenance opportunities arising out of management relationships.”&nbsp;
Most of Dubai’s VIP throughput is driven by wealth distribution: many ultra-high-net-worth individuals from India find Dubai an attractive residence, and several people from the conflict in Russia and Ukraine are coming to Dubai. “There’s a continued influx of Chinese into the region with relevant net worth,” Ostheimer said. “All of these are stimulators of our industry, which I think is being reflected in the increasing activities over the last 10 years, but certainly not at the levels that the market expected.”
Ostheimer conceded that DCAF was not going to double or triple its activities in the next few years. “I remember questions being asked in 2012 and 2013, where the market was expected to double or triple over the next 10 years,” he said. “What we’ve seen is maybe a 20 to 30 percent increase.”
Though Ostheimer <a href="https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2019-05-16/dcaf-mulls-entry-saudi-market">appeared </a>to be bullish about Saudi Arabia in 2019, continuing hesitancy is more a reflection of the situation in the Kingdom than at DC Aviation. “We would always want to increase our market share,” he said. “If the right opportunity were to come up in Saudi Arabia, I’m sure this becomes a consideration. That will be steered at the group level, where whatever we do as a group is decided.”
Ostheimer is bullish on the business outlook, as the Germany-based group is poised to celebrate multiple anniversaries later this year. “We anticipate steady growth in the near future,” he said. “The Dubai market seems to outperform other jurisdictions around the world. We are facing a tough time worldwide, with a lot of decline across industries. Dubai, as part of the UAE, seems to be able to sustain the headwinds a little better than other locations. That’s something we’ve seen here over the years.
“I am also looking forward to celebrating our 10th [Dubai], 15th [Malta], and 25th anniversaries [Germany],” Ostheimer concluded.

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