Aerospace Resource Guide: The Netherlands				The Netherlands Statistics
	Summary Current Market Trends Current Demand Main Competitors Best Prospects	Subsector Focus: Helicopters Barriers Trade Events/Associations CS Contact		Capital: Amsterdam Population: 16.9 million GDP USD: USD 696.3 billion Currency: Euro Language: Dutch

Summary

The Dutch civil aviation industry is transparent, making it relatively easy to identify the key players. Nevertheless, U.S. companies should consider working with a local representative in order to take advantage of upcoming opportunities in a timely manner. Although competition is strong, U.S. suppliers with advanced technology and a good price/quality ratio can expect to do well in the Netherlands.


Current Market Trends

Aviolanda, formerly known as Maintenance Valley, was established to support and stimulate the national aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) sector. This initiative aims to take the Netherlands to the top as a center for state-of-the-art industrial maintenance, logistical processes, and repair in both civil and military aviation. Aviolanda is based on one of the largest military air force bases in the Netherlands and the adjacent civilian premises where Stork Fokker has one of its large manufacturing plants and aircraft service centers. In addition to the air force base, the military premises include the Royal Netherlands Air Force’s training institute, the logistics center, and it the meteorological service. Various ongoing projects at Aviolando include:

3i – Integrated coastal zone management via increased situational awareness through Innovations on unmanned aircraft systems. This program stimulates the use of UAVs over sea and aims to develop a prototype for this purpose. Value: €3.7 million. Estimated project completion date: September 2014. More: http://www.2seas-uav.com.

Business Accelarator (BAC) – Stimulates innovations in the field of electrical systems, corrosion treatment, and composite maintenance and avionics.

Unmanned Aircraft System Knowledge Center – At the moment, there is limited use of unmanned Aircraft Systems in the Netherlands although the necessary knowledge is prevalent on the market. The knowledge center aims to cluster this know-how, which can be tapped into when demand increases. It drives innovation and development in the fields of MRO; electronics; assembly; development and production of parts; training and education; certification; logistics; knowledge dissemination; and publicity.

Current Demand

The demand for U.S. civilian aircraft, engines, equipment, and parts have fluctuated throughout the years, as seen in the table below. The rise in statistics reflect aircraft and parts replacement. The decline in exports represent economic downturns or a period immediately following a major purchase/replacement.

U.S. Exports to Netherlands by 5-digit End-Use Code (In thousands of dollars)

End-Use Code	Value 2011	Value 2012	Value 2013
(22090) Civilian aircraft, engines, eqm’t & parts	1,767,861	1,274,008	1,296,149

Source: http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/statistics/product/enduse/exports/c4210.html#questions

Due to economic conditions and the rising cost of new aircraft, private owners and airlines are less inclined to replace their fleet. Instead, they tend to choose for aircraft life extension through major maintenance and repair work.


Competitors

Strong competition can be expected from Western European companies. Key players in the Netherlands include:

Fokker Services – Specialized in MRO of commercial, private and military aircraft.
World Class Aviation Academy – Training institute in the field of aircraft maintenance
Stork Fokker Elmo – Design, manufacturing and support for the electrical wiring interconnection systems (EWIS) for aircraft, aero-engine and defense system applications.

Visit the Netherlands Aerospace Group website for a detailed list of competitors in the Netherlands: http://www.nag.aero/leden/lijst-a-z.html.

Best Prospects

Innovative, high tech products that will help the Dutch maintain and improve its competitive position has great potential. The Dutch are looking for innovation and development in the fields of MRO, specifically the areas of electronics; assembly; development and production of parts; training and education; certification; logistics; knowledge dissemination; and publicity. Innovations in the field of electrical systems, corrosion treatment, and composite maintenance and avionics will also be well-received.

Subsector Focus: Helicopters

Although the Netherlands is not a helicopter OEM market, there is some helicopter activity. There are six heliports across the country in the cities of Rotterdam (Maasvlakte Heliport), Emmen, Maastricht, Amsterdam, Ede, and one is under construction in The Hague (Ypenburg).

The greatest helicopter growth is expected in the area of law enforcement. Currently, the national police fleet is comprised of six Eurocopter EC-135 and two AgustaWestlands. The ANWB Medical Air Assistance (a subsidiary of the Dutch traffic, transport and roadside assistance organization ANWB) owns and operates all six trauma helicopters, which are of the Eurocopter EC-135 model as well.

The civil helicopter market is comprised of several commercial helicopter operators including:
Heli-jet: organizes and operates helicopter and private jet flights
Heliflight: helicopter flights, charters, film and photography work, and tours.
Helicopters.nl: tours, flight lessons, and VIP transportation
Heliholland: helicopters tours, training and lessons, maintenance, and all forms of transportation
Helicentre: training and lessons and business flights and tours
Heliair: tours, lessons, photography
Prince Helicopters: tours, video and photography, pipeline control, lessons

A list of key Dutch helicopter systems manufacturers is available on request.

It is also worth noting that the fleet of Dutch defense helicopters is comprised of 29 Apaches, 17 Chinooks, 17 Cougars, and 4 Alouettes to form a fleet of approximately 80 helicopters.

Barriers

There are no trade barriers against U.S. products and services.

Trade Events/Associations

ATC Global 2014
March 10-12, 2015 | Amsterdam, Netherlands
http://www.atcglobalhub.com/index.php/en
ATC Global is the largest Air Traffic Management exhibition in the international marketplace.

Netherlands Aerospace Group
http://www.nag.aero/en/home.html
Dutch aerospace industry association

NIDV HeliPlatform
http://www.nidv.eu/en-US/pages/1437/Over-heli.aspx
Defense industry association with a civil and military helicopter sustainment platform

National Aerospace Laboratory
http://www.nlr.nl/smartsite.dws?l=en&id=8650
The National Aerospace Laboratory (NLR) conducts applied research on behalf of the aviation and aerospace sectors. It is the key center of expertise for aerospace technology in The Netherlands.

U.S. Commercial Service Contact Information:

Ms. Natasha Keylard
Senior Commercial Specialist
Natasha.Keylard@trade.gov
+31 (0) 70 31 02 417