First UAE manufactured vertical fin of ATR aircraft unveiled in Al Ain

Al Ain: Marking the 41st UAE National Day, the country’s leading aero-structure builders has promised an exciting career to Emiratis wishing to serve the nation in a hi-tech environment.

Strata, the Al Ain-based one of the world’s newest and best-equipped aerospace factories, has actively been employing Emirati talent, said Badr Al Olama, the CEO of Strata. The factory has unveiling its first package of vertical fins for the ATR aircrafts that will be supplied to Alenia Aermacchi, the Italian aerospace company.

The unveiling ceremony and shipment coincided with National Day commemorations at Strata headquarters in Al Ain, and was attended by representatives of both the companies including Maurizio De Mitri, SVP Alenia Aermacchi.

Al Olama said the Strata had sent 43 of its employees, including three Emirati women, to Alenia Aermacchi’s facility in Italy, to receive specialised training in all aspects of assembly, operations and composites manufacturing for the ATR vertical fins and rudders.

“The trainees have now returned to Al Ain to begin implementing the skills they acquired to successfully complete this package,” he said, adding that he has been looking forward to seeing more Emiratis joining Strata’s training programmes.

Career development

Suad Al Badi, one of the Emirati employees at Strata, said: “Seeing the results of our hard work leave Al Ain for Foggia in Italy is incredibly exciting,” They received training and exposure has been fundamental to the Emiratis’ career development, enhancing their practical expertise and also the understanding of the exciting potential of the wider aerospace industry, she said. “We are proud to share our experiences with colleagues, furthering the development of the company,” she added.

The Strata currently has some 500 employees, about 30 per cent of whom are UAE nationals mainly women. Al Olama said the company has 10 different manufacturing lines that would be doubled in the coming years.

“We are constantly building up capabilities for complex type of parts and looking even beyond being only pure parts suppliers,” said Al Olama. In this filed, Strata aspires to become one of the top three suppliers in the world. The company has already been supplying parts to Airbus and Boeing aircraft.

Al Olama said Strata has now being supplying vertical fin and the supply of two other parts of empennage such as Rudder and Horizontal Stabilisers for the ATR aircraft are scheduled to coming in production shortly. He said aircraft parts are based on hi-tech technology and are highly complex.

“Just the fin is composed of 450 different parts,” he added. The factory initially took two months to produce a fin, but the continuous capability enhancement has enabled it to do it in just a week, he said.