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Universal Aviation, the ground handling
division of Universal Weather and Aviation, Inc. announced at ABACE this week
that it will expand its presence in the Asia-Pacific region, with the addition
of Universal Aviation Maldives, a joint venture with Inner Maldives.
Universal Aviation Maldives will be based at
Malé International Airport (VRMM) and will begin operations in the next two
months.
“We identified the Maldives as a destination
that can be high risk and stress for our clients,” said
Charlie Mularski,
Regional Vice President, Asia-Pacific, Universal. “In partnering with Inner
Maldives, we feel confident that we will be better positioned to enable our
clients’ mission success in the country. Our focus on international standards,
processes, customer service, ramp safety, and compliance combined with Inner
Maldives local talent and expertise will be provide great value to our shared
clients.”
Universal Aviation Maldives will provide
ground support and supervision throughout the Maldives, including Malé (VRMM)
and Gan (VRMG). Additional benefits for clients, resulting from the joint venture, include hotel savings for crew and passengers as well as air transport
and tours.
| “I am delighted about this development. This
is another first for Maldives and Inner Maldives,” said
Mohamed Firaq,
Managing Director, Inner Maldives Holidays “We are proud to partner with a
global leader such as Universal and certain that this will add to the confidence
and offer world-class service for commercial jets arriving into Maldives.”
“In addition to the operational benefits
Universal Aviation Maldives will provide our clients, we also expect the
location to boost the local economy with new jobs and improve international
standards and recurrent training for business aviation throughout the country,”
said Mularski. “We are looking forward to working closely with the Maldives
government to continue to identify ways in which it can further improve the
country’s aviation infrastructure, leading to further growth and development.”
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Universal Aviation, the ground support
division of Universal Weather and Aviation, Inc., has more than 40 locations in
20 countries, including 19 in the Asia-Pacific region with the addition of
Universal Aviation Maldives.
Universal Aviation Thailand to provide
customer service & ramp training to Koh Samui Airport
In further news, Universal Aviation Thailand,
has entered into an agreement to provide customer service and ramp safety
training to PGGS, the dedicated ground handler for Koh Samui International
Airport (VTSM).
“One of the biggest challenges that Samui
Airport currently has is overnight parking,” explained Charlie Mularski, “Our
goal with this agreement to improve the customer experience and improve and
maximize the airport’s parking capacity, reducing operators’ stress and risk.”
The agreement goes into effect this week, and
training and remarking of the ramp will start immediately. Universal Aviation
Thailand will have team members based in Samui supporting PGGS. All invoices
will continue coming from PGGS to avoid confusion in the market.
“The first change operators will notice is
condensed parking on the new ramp located on the west side, where with the help
and support of Universal Aviation Thailand training and supervision, we will
increase the available parking capacity significantly,” said
Ms. Sumalee Chaitientong,
VP-Ancillary Revenues, Samui Airport. “This will make Samui friendlier to
overnight parking during peak seasons, ensuring Samui can continue to serve as a
premier destination in Southeast Asia while attracting more business aviation
operators.”
The new parking and customer service
experience changes will be implemented by the end of May. The airport’s master
plan also calls for a dedicated terminal and fast-track CIQ for business
aviation in 2018.
“Our goal is to continue investing in
dedicated facilities and lounges at Samui airport, which are part of our master
plan review,” said Chaitientong. “The natural progression is to equip our team
with the know-how and customer service approach to maximize and elevate quality
and create an everlasting impression when VIP customers visit the airport. We
have engaged Universal to help with this expansion and training of our team and
look forward to leveraging their vast global presence and experience to support
generating awareness of the benefits of using Samui to operators outside of
Thailand.”
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