Air Transport

Abu Dhabi reinforced its ambitions to be a major aerospace player, signing at the show a major maintenance, repair and overhaul package with General Electric and launching plans to build an aerospace cluster at its second international airport, Al Ain.

The GE deal sees Abu Dhabi Aircraft Technologies, a subsidiary of government-owned investment house Mubadala, become the world's first MRO provider for the GEnx engines that will power the Boeing 787 and 747-8.

The GE facility will become fully operational in 2013 and support the growing fleet of GE engines in the Middle East and North Africa region.

Mubadala's sister airline, Etihad, announced at the show it is selecting the GEnx for its 35 787s, as well as the Engine Alliance GP7200 - in which GE is a partner - for its 10 Airbus A380s. GE joint venture CFM International lost out, however, to rival International Aero Engines in the contest to power the carrier's A320s.

The GE announcement is part of a broader partnership announced last year under which Mubadala committed to work with the US giant in areas such as commercial finance, clean energy research and development and training. Mubadala - which also owns 70% of Swiss MRO group SR Technics as well as major stakes in Piaggio Aerospace and Ferrari - has a remit to invest in industries and businesses that will boost the technological base of the United Arab Emirates.

Separately, another Mubadala division, Abu Dhabi Airports (ADAC), is to establish an aerospace industrial park in the emirate's second city, anchored by a Mubadala plant designing and building composite components for Airbus and other aero manufacturers. The partnership venture with EADS was announced last year.

At the show, Mubadala signed deals with a succession of European small and medium-enterprises which will open facilities at the 25km2 (9.7 miles2) park, including four German companies that are part of Bavarian aerospace cluster BavAIRia, Swiss rotary engine manufacturer Mistral Engines and two UK firms.

Beagle Aerospace will build a spares warehouse and eventually a composite repair facility, while Generation Metals International will supply aerospace metalics from the Al Ain site.

With Qatar Airways also announcing an order for 24 A320 family aircraft, Gulf-based companies were making the running again at Paris. One company notable by its absence was Dubai Aerospace Enterprise, a significant force at recent shows. The group has been affected by the collapse in Dubai's economy. However, the chief executive of the emirate's airports company, Paul Griffiths, dismissed at the show claims that the statelet's aviation ambitions were derailed and said $17.6 billion investment plans for the world's biggest airport, Dubai World Central at Jebel Ali, were still firmly in place.