Daher today announced the closing of its acquisition of France’s AAA (Assistance Aéronautique et Aérospatiale). By bringing together the activities of AAA and Daher – both of which are top-ranked companies in manufacturing services for civil and defense aerospace – the combination will create a leader in this very dynamic marketplace. The new group will be present in key areas where the aerospace industry is concentrated in France and abroad to even better respond to the sector’s needs in the context of sharp increases in production rates.
The relationship of Daher and AAA will enable a global offer of manufacturing services to the market, covering a very broad spectrum of needs. With 2,000 employees and an annual revenue of approximately 200 million euros, AAA provides solutions that complement those of Daher – such as the assembly and installation of aerostructures, systems and engines; flight line services; maintenance; and even industrialization and quality support. Daher, for its part, is a long-standing recognized player in cabin installation activities, as well as completion/outstanding work.
Daher’s goal is to continue and further develop what has made AAA successful for more than 30 years by capitalizing – in particular – on its ability to train a highly qualified workforce, both for its own purposes and for its customers. In the dual context of the aerospace industry’s increased production rates and recruitment tensions, training/certification of talent is a key point for safeguarding aircraft production.
With the AAA acquisition, Daher becomes the benchmark in manufacturing services for France and takes a leadership position globally, thereby strengthening its presence in the aerospace value chain. Benefitting from its business model based on four highly complementary activities – aircraft manufacturing, manufacturing, manufacturing services, and logistics – the Group is capable of supporting its customers with end-to-end capabilities, not only in the regions of aerospace industry concentration where the company already is present, but in new regions of France and abroad.
The overall management of AAA is now entrusted to Daher’s Cédric Eloy as the CEO, assisted by Deputy General Manager Sylvain Ruellé, who also is a Daher employee.
Didier Kayat, the CEO of Daher stated: “The acquisition of AAA was obvious for us, as the DNA of these two family companies is so similar. We share values based on entrepreneurship, agility and the value of our employees, which are guarantees for the success of this merger. The development of manufacturing services is perfectly aligned with Daher’s desire to provide ever-better support to our customers in the complex context that industry faces today. This is a key step in enabling us to achieve the ambitious objectives of our ‘Take off 2027’ strategic plan, as it enables us to strengthen the presence with our customers, as well as internationally.”
For Gilles Chauby, AAA’s founding president: “This takeover offers tremendous development opportunities for AAA as a result of the new impetus that Daher will bring. This is the best step forward for our company’s managers, technicians and workers, as well as for our customers.”
Cédric Eloy added: “I am very proud to take the reins of AAA and what it represents. My goal is to develop a robust operation by building on the foundation provided by AAA and the key attributes that have made it strong – namely its agility in responding to the challenges of customers and employees. We have big ambitions for this activity, particularly with the opportunity to significantly increase international revenue. I am convinced that our manufacturing services offer is one of the strengths that will enable our customers to meet their production commitments in the current context of limited resources and the restructuring of the global aerospace supply chain.”
Sylvain Ruellé concluded; This acquisition is fully aligned with Daher’s “Take off 2027” strategic plan. With the resources of AAA, we will round out our international offer of manufacturing services – especially in defense as well as in the “manufacturing engineering” sector.
