British aircraft manufacturer Britten-Norman has officially opened its production facility in Bembridge on the Isle of Wight, following the planned closure of its Romania facilities in June earlier this year.
Heralded as a “new dawn” by its CEO, Willam Hynett, the return of Britten-Norman’s production facilities to the UK follows 15 years of planning.
The manufacturer will utilise two hangers on its site to house its production line with jigs that have recently returned from Romania. It aims to return to producing pre-Covid levels of two aircraft a year, with plans to increase this number to eight over 24 months and then up to a maximum of 16. The first new Islander built in the UK is set to be completed in May 2024.
“It’s been done before, so we’re not breaking new ground,” Hynett commented, although he conceded that the last time this number of Britten-Norman aircraft was manufactured was 30 years ago.
When Britten-Norman moved its production to Romania in 1968, what started as a facility that churned out 100 aircraft saw production levels “take a bit of a nosedive” over the last 50 years, Hynett admitted.
According to Britten-Norman, the return of its production process to the UK has allowed the manufacturer to regain control of its supply chain and improve the efficiency of its manufacturing process. To help bolster its expansion plans, new apprentices have also come on board, with three being taken on this year.
Hynett also revealed that the construction of a third hanger would be in the works around 2030, with plans to extend on its 25-acre site to facilitate the eventual building of airframes for its hydrogen fuel-cell Islander. The journey towards decarbonisation was about “pushing compromises and being on a journey towards decarbonisation” rather than a fixed destination.
He added to LARA that the site would aim to utilise green energy sources, compounding its ethos and commitment to decarbonise.
“What we’ve got here is land,” he said. “Making better use of that for solar would make sense. But these are all huge barriers to entry, so support through incentives is what we’ll aim to do.”
“It’ll require additional investment, and there’s a lot to get involved.”
Cranfield Aerospace merger paused
Hynett disclosed to LARA that the planned merger with Cranfield Aerospace (CAeS) was on hold in favour of a strategic partnership after missing its summer merger deadline.
“It’s not that we don’t want to embrace other potential future markets. It’s about making sure that our best customer is properly supported,” he said.
Instead, it will focus on delivering the hydrogen-powered Islander with Project Fresson, which is due for commercial launch in 2026.
“The important thing is getting the product [Project Fresson’s hydrogen Islander] to market. If you get the product as a merged entity, great, but I don’t want to have the merger delay as something that prevents it.
“We don’t want to force a merger. If the partnership leads to a merger, then we will press on, but if not, we’ll focus on the volumes and making sure the technical aspects are as seamless as possible,” he added.
A CAeS spokesperson confirmed this ‘Strategic Partnership Agreement’ to LARA: “No definitive timeline has been set for [the merger’s] completion. We mutually decided to prioritise a strategic partnership for now.”
New markets
Recently, Britten Norman earned certification for the BN2T-4S type from the FAA in January 2023, which has opened up a lot of new commercial markets for the manufacturer. To add to this, several LOIs have been announced for the Islander and the extended version with the likes of Australian charter operatore, Torres Strait Air, and SJC Group in Malta signing agreements.
Britten-Norman’s expansion into the commercial market in India via aircraft operator Spirit Air and its LOI for six of its BN2T-4S aircraft has, however, been a big shift. One that has been welcomed by the manufacturer, albeit challenging.
“It’s an interesting market, but it’s actually quite hard to break,” said Hynett to LARA, disclosing that there’s been a lot of interest in the stretched variant and noted it as the “right aircraft for the Indian market”.
