Sunrise Airways Unveils New Maintenance Facility in Santiago, Dominican Republic

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti – (July 11, 2013) – Sunrise Airways (IATA: S6), a new start-up airline based in Port-au-Prince, recently opened a dedicated Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility located at Cibao International Airport (STI) in Santiago, Dominican Republic, becoming the only Haitian airline with its own, in-house maintenance capabilities.

Measuring 8,000 square-feet in size, the facility has the capacity to store three of the carrier’s flagship 19-seat Jetstream 32 EP aircraft. More than 2,200 line items of Jetstream 32 parts are stored between the Sunrise MRO in Santiago and its headquarters in Port-au-Prince, minimizing controllable service disruptions.

“In order for us to grow and achieve our goal of uniting the Western Caribbean with improved regional air service, having our own maintenance facility is a must,” said Philippe Bayard, President of Sunrise Airways. “Our Santiago facility is convenient to our base of operations in Port-au-Prince and carries all the necessary approvals from the Office National de l’Aviation Civile (OFNAC), giving us a solid foundation upon which to build our network.”

Sunrise currently serves domestic routes within Haiti operating 19-seat Jetstream 32 EP aircraft manufactured by BAE Systems. The carrier plans to expand its route network in 2013, launching new service to Kingston, Jamaica and Providenciales, Turks & Caicos as first steps toward establishing a hub in Port-au-Prince to better serve air travel needs within the Western Caribbean.