Dallas Aeronautical Services (DAS) is in the final stages of receiving approval to open a center for the maintenance, repair and overhaul of composite and bonded metal/composite components for a wide range of business aircraft types. The center will be the first of its kind in South America.

DAS is currently negotiating for an autoclave to be established in a facility at Caçapava, close to the airfield at São José dos Campos. Another facility has also been identified as a site for MRO work. The company is in negotiations with Brazilian aviation agency ANAC to get the Caçapava facility certified, and estimates that it is around 90 percent of the way to completion. As the first of its kind in the country, the DAS facility has run up against some inevitable delays in the process, as ANAC has had no prior experience of composite repair centers.

DAS operates a well-established composites MRO and component supply business close to Dallas-Love Field in Texas, and the Brazil operation will be similar in its advanced technology and capability. When certified, it will be a Part 145-accredited facility. It is expected that repair work for components of the IAE V2500 engine that powers many Airbus single-aisle airliners will also be performed by DAS Brasil.

For the Brazilian and South American business aviation community, the DAS Brasil facility will provide considerable savings in both time and cost. With around half of the current repair cost being consumed by ferrying components back and forth to the U.S., the establishment of a local facility could cut the costs of composite repairs by 20 to 25 percent.