An industry leading aircraft painting company has welcomed its first aircraft arrival for the opening of its new base at Teesside International Airport.
Airbourne Colours unveiled its new aircraft painting facility at Teesside Airport for an opening ceremony on Tuesday (October 1) following a £6.5million investment.
The first aircraft to be painted at the facility – a Jet2 Boeing 737-800 – was unveiled at the event attended by hundreds of senior business leaders and existing customers.
Teessider Steve Darbyshire is founder and Chief Executive of Airbourne Colours and the 50-year-old’s company is creating 40 jobs in its expansion.
The Jet2 aircraft will undergo a full strip and repaint into the distinctive Jet2.com livery. It will take nine days to complete and will be the first of around 35 aircraft to be re-painted each year at Teesside.
Airbourne Colours has annual turnover of more than £12million – and works for many of Europe’s leading airlines including Jet2, EasyJet, Loganair, Smartlynx, SAS, TAP Portugal, Air Dolomiti, Lufthansa and Brussels Airlines.
Airbourne Colours is Europe’s only privately-owned aircraft painting company, with only one other competitor in the UK.
Steve said: “It is an absolute honour and of great pride to me to be able to play a key part in what is to be the newest and most advanced paint facility to be built at Teesside Airport. This really is a dream come true to be able to return to my roots and bring employment back to the area where I grew up.”
The launch follows completion of the 27,000sq ft aircraft paint facility - the first of its kind built in the UK this millennium.
Barnard Castle-based S&A Fabrications was the main contractor on the development, which took less than a year to build
More than 230 tonnes of British steel was used in its construction and the development includes car parking, offices and a concrete apron to access the hangar from the taxiway.
Phil Forster, Teesside International Airport Managing Director, said: “With our fantastic transport links, unique location and the benefits of Freeport status, Teesside Airport Business Park offers major advantages for companies in sectors ranging from logistics to manufacturing.
“We are delighted to welcome Airbourne Colours to Teesside Airport and the company further help us achieve our ambition to be the first choice one-stop shop for airline maintenance, repair and operations overhaul.”
Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen said: “It is fantastic to welcome a global name like Airbourne Colours, which is also an outstanding Teesside success story.
“This is another example of how we are delivering the jobs and investment that is driving our airport forward and ensuring its future success.
“However, this is just the beginning and we won’t stop the hard work in bringing fantastic businesses to Teesside Airport alongside providing the destinations our passengers want.”
The progress follows recent significant investments from the private sector at Teesside Airport, including a multi-million pound investment from Willis Aviation to create a new engineering base, which will create over 200 jobs.
The first 25,105sq ft unit of the £200million Business Park South has now been built alongside a mile-long link road connecting the development to the A67. The southside business park will ultimately create 4,400 jobs when fully operational.
The growth in commercial operations helped the airport deliver its first profit in more than a decade.
