FLYHT Aerospace Solutions (TSX-V:FLY, StockForum), a Calgary-based designer, developer and service provider to the aerospace industry, announced today that the company had signed a contract agreeing to install the AFIRS(TM) 228 (Automated Flight Information Reporting System) into China's first domestic jet, the ARJ21.
FLYHT signed the deal with Chinese government-owned COMAC as it ramps up to produce the 90-seat ARJ21 in Shanghai.
At present, there are four units on order for final test and first delivery, making a total value for that order of $0.5 million, but when all of the 415 units have been delivered, FLYHT will realize in excess of $40 million in revenue from the deal.
The need for this technology is only going to grow in China. According to the news release, “In January of 2013, The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) announced a new policy that states 50% of Chinese commercial transport aircraft must be equipped with Satellite Communications systems by 2015 - and 100% by the end of 2017.”
Bill Tempany, president and CEO of FLYHT, commented in a Technica Pro News interview, “We have an exciting growth opportunity because of the lead we have in the marketplace. We are a certified on about 60 different aircraft types. Those certifications take about 18 months to get depending on the jurisdiction. No other company has the number of certifications that we do, for our range of aircraft."
He went on to explain, "For the last eight years we’ve been focused on entering the Chinese market. It has taken diligence and patience. But right now, everything is aligning. Our R&D is being significantly reduced as we move to the next phase, being a service provider."
Tempany summed up, “The ARJ21 installs are a major milestone for our company. We told our investors that we were working to sign new commercial OEM's to our technology and this is a little ahead of schedule. We are very proud to be a part of the exciting future that COMAC and AVIC have embarked upon with this inaugural commercial aircraft launch in China.”
FLYHT was in the news recently when the company welcomed Dragon(TM) to their product portfolio.
Shares rose 12.79% on the news to $0.485 per share.
Currently there are 144,211,656 shares outstanding with a market cap of $69.94 million.