Rising military tension in north Asia sparked by China’s escalating defense spending and erratic posturing by North Korea is driving growth in Honeywell’s defense business. The need to maintain operational availability for the large installed base of U.S.-made aircraft operated by Japan, South Korea and Taiwan is spurring strong demand for spares and product support, according to Mark Burgess, senior director with Honeywell Aerospace Asia Pacific (Booth 23, Chalet CS42).
“The average level of growth in defense expenditure for equipment procurement and sustainment has increased by around five to six percent in most [Asian] markets and north Asia is at the high end of this trend,” Burgess told AIN.
At the southern end of the Pacific rim, new opportunities are opening up for Honeywell to help the Australian and New Zealand militaries to be more self-sufficient in supporting their own U.S.-made equipment. “This business was previously conducted under U.S. foreign military sales rules, but now we are seeing this brought onshore and this allows local [support] businesses to set up depot capability through direct commercial sales,” explained Burgess. “It allows us to better serve our customers and deliver better value for them.” Providing support for Honeywell’s T55 engines that power Boeing’s CH-47 Chinook helicopters is a prime example of this trend, with service centers established for this product in both South Korea and Singapore.
The next opportunity for Honeywell is likely to be spurred by Australia’s adoption of Lockheed Martin’s F-35 fighter, for which Honeywell provides equipment such as thermal and power management systems, APUs, and the environmental control system, as well as wheels and brakes. The company has been working closely with the Australian government to help it shape a product support plan for the aircraft and Burgess predicted that decisions on implementing this plan could be announced later this year.
Honeywell is also chasing deals for CH-47 upgrades, with South Korea being the Asian operators for the rotorcraft that are interested in switching from the D to F model. Burgess also sees strong prospects for more avionics upgrades for F-16 fighters, with prospective clients including South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Japan and Australia.
