Press Release: Virgin Atlantic partners with Bii.aero to manage substantial surplus aircraft parts programme

London, 25^th August 2022: Virgin Atlantic has appointed Bii.aero, a leading provider of aircraft parts and services for the commercial aviation sector, to oversee the consignment and storage process of its large surplus inventory of B747-400, A340-600 and A330-200 assets now that the airline no longer operates these fleets of aircraft. The top-quality material covers all ATA chapters and includes engines, APUs, and avionics. Virgin Atlantic is the latest airline to consign its inventory to Bii as the Company augments its portfolio of new and used serviceable material to meet global demand.

Following the competitive tender process Bii was chosen based on the organisation’s highly experienced team and its reputation for specialist consignment management.  In a mutually beneficial agreement, Bii will store, manage, market  the material to secure revenue from the excess stock. The material is desirable, already certified and ready-to-go.  Bii will sell, exchange and loan the parts, in accordance with customer requirements.

Of course a project of this size with complex requirements needs logistical expertise, but Bii’s team has handled this type of project for more than 30 years, co-ordinating smooth transitions and maximising value for customers.   Martyn Haines, Head of Supply Chain & Commercial at Virgin Atlantic is one of the main contacts for this project and comments, “We were keen to find a partner that would prioritise our material and be in a position to pro-actively reach the market to gain revenue from the stock quickly. Having a support company like Bii that will dedicate staff and facilities to make it happen as a priority was essential to meet our objectives.  We like their combination of fresh-thinking underpinned by a depth of industry experience.”

“Having stock available from the shelf is one of Bii’s key goals going forward,” says Francis Cradock, CEO. “This agreement works perfectly from both companies’ perspectives and harmonises with our existing consignment business for engines and 737 teardown material with other partners.”

The stock will transition across 90 days from Virgin Atlantic’s Cardiff stores to Bii’s ultra-modern warehousing facility close to LGW.  After inspection by Bii, a small percentage of unserviceable material will require re-tagging – this will be managed by Bii’s in-house repair management team through audited MRO shops worldwide.

Cradock explains that the Company’s business model is to expand with stock holdings of owned and consigned materials. “We have spacious new facilities to manage our growth strategy and there will always be space to work with new partners like Virgin Atlantic. We are building our portfolio with additional airline stock, teardowns, and packages of material that we purchase tactically to align with customers’ needs.  Bii is becoming a growing force worldwide in the surplus sector of the market and we know that this consignment of B747-400, A340-600 and A330-200 assets will get the market talking.”

Well-funded, with a heritage spanning several decades, Bii is already professionally structured to cover the support of the Virgin surplus material including warehousing, stores, sales and administration staff.  Post-COVID, the Company embarked on a programme to streamline processes and build in-house resources with with a highly-experienced and respected team.

“We’re really delighted to welcome Virgin Atlantic to the Bii stock hub.  We’ve worked hard to establish Bii as as one of the key ‘go to’ sources for material handling -whether it is supporting supply contracts with kit building and supply, which we have been doing for a number of years, or marketing their excess materials,” adds Cradock. “We are looking at many new ways to support customers, like Virgin, including selling material with in-house stock solutions, or providing the expertise to sell directly from airlines’ own warehouses and locations. We know we can add value and deliver sustainable revenues by effectively marketing their materials while they focus on running the airline itself.”