Airbus in running to buy Safe Air unit

European aerospace giant Airbus is believed to be in the running NFL jerseys china to buy Air New Zealand's Safe Air engineering subsidiary.Blenheim based Safe Air does upgrade and maintenance work for the Royal New Zealand Air Force as well as for other military and commercial aircraft operators around the world.The engineering base has long been deemed non core to Air New Zealand's business and the company has been looking for a buyer for several years.Safe Air has carried out more than 90 per cent of the RNZAF's heavy maintenance since 1998.Read also:Air NZ jobs to go as work sent overseasBoeing Airbus reap surprise $24b wide body haulAirbus Group Australia Pacific has expanded its aircraft maintenance operations across the Tasman in the past two years Nfl jerseys cheap and taking over the Safe Air operation could be part of its expansion in this region. The Toulouse based planemaker is in line to bid to replace New Zealand's ageing Hercules fleet Wholesale authentic jerseys with its new heavy military transport aircraft, the A400M, when tenders are opened within the next few years.Air New Zealand has talked to potential buyers but chief operations officer Bruce Parton would not discuss who they were and said the airline had not signed any deal."Air New Zealand has been looking at how to best position the Safe Air business for future success, including potentially identifying a partner Wholesale nfl jerseys that is better placed than us to grow the business in its specialist area of military engineering support," he said.An Airbus spokesman in Sydney would not comment on the possible purchase. A spokesman for Defence Minister Gerry Brownlee referred inquiries to Air New Zealand.Primarily a helicopter maker in Australia, Airbus Group employs more than 1300 people across 15 sites in Australia and New Zealand. It supports more than 500 Airbus helicopters and provides "through life support" for military fixed wing aircraft as well, including Australian Air Force Hercules and Orions.