Midcoast Aviation announced today that it will consolidate its U.S.-based completions and heavy maintenance businesses in St. Louis, MO, and will close its Savannah, GA, operation by year-end.

In an effort to focus its core completions and heavy maintenance capabilities in North America, Midcoast Aviation will perform those services solely at its St. Louis location.

The Savannah operation, comprising 175,000 sq ft (16,258 sq m) of hangar and production space, will finish the current completions work-in-process before closing. General Dynamics Aerospace Group is currently evaluating possible uses for the facilities, but no final decisions have been made yet. Approximately 362 jobs will be affected in Savannah as a result of the consolidation. Outplacement assistance is being provided to current employees.

Donald Petersen, president of Midcoast Aviation, said, "By focusing on continuous improvement in our Midcoast operations, we have achieved significant gains in cycle time and quality. This enabled a consolidation of our talents into a single center of excellence based in St. Louis, while actually increasing our overall throughput capacity. Our St. Louis site, comprising of 655,379 sq ft (60,758 sq m) of hangar and production space, including two narrow body completion hangars we constructed in 2008, are sufficient to serve our current needs.

"We regret the impact this decision will have on the employees who will be affected, and are committed to providing assistance to them throughout the process," Petersen said.

Press release issued by Midcoast Aviation.