On June 19, Airbus (Chengdu) Lifecycle Services Co., Ltd. officially received approval from the Ministry of Commerce and other ministries and commissions to conduct global aviation maintenance services outside the customs special supervision area in a bonded supervision manner. This marks the successful establishment of the first pilot for bonded maintenance services outside the designated area in our province.

In January 2022, Chengdu, Airbus, Tarmac Aerosave, and Satair signed a cooperation agreement for the "Airbus Aircraft Lifecycle Service Project", marking Airbus' first direct investment project for aircraft recycling outside Europe. The project is located in Shuangliu District, Chengdu, with Phase 1 officially launched on January 24 this year. It aims to provide global customers with a complete lifecycle management solution from aircraft parking, storage, maintenance, upgrades, conversions, dismantling, and recycling. It is expected to become the largest aircraft maintenance base in the central-western region in terms of individual aircraft hangar parking capacity and to possess strong competitiveness in the Asia-Pacific region.

Maintenance services are the core link for the full-chain operation of this project. As the Airbus project is located outside the customs special supervision area, foreign aircraft awaiting maintenance cannot benefit from preferential policies for bonded maintenance within the designated area upon entry declaration. Foreign aircraft are declared for entry under the supervision of "repair items" and are required to provide customs with a guarantee based on the corresponding duties and VAT levied on the aircraft value. To help enterprises save costs, the Sichuan Provincial Department of Commerce, along with the Department of Ecology and Environment of Sichuan Province, Chengdu Customs, Chengdu, and Shuangliu District, has studied the feasibility of bonded maintenance outside the designated area. They have developed tailored supervision plans for each enterprise and strengthened targeted upward reporting, fully advancing efforts to get the pilot approved. The successful approval of the pilot will effectively streamline the project's import and export processes, reduce tariffs and guarantees for enterprise maintenance materials, help reduce costs, increase efficiency, enhance competitiveness, and deeply connect to the global aviation industry chain and value chain.

Reportedly, the Airbus Lifecycle Service Project is planned to be built in two phases, totaling 125 parking spaces, 2 wide-body aircraft hangars, an engine testing area, and supporting office buildings.

Currently, Sichuan has established a bonded maintenance service system, represented by chip testing, aviation engine maintenance, and laptop repairs. The approval of the Airbus bonded maintenance pilot outside the designated area signifies a crucial step for Sichuan in exploring and fostering new quality productive forces in the field of foreign trade.

Note: Bonded maintenance services outside the designated area refer to a high-tech and high-value new business format where enterprises, outside the customs special supervision area, import goods or transportation tools from abroad for testing and maintenance due to component damage, functional failure, quality defects, and then re-export them after repair in a bonded maintenance manner.