Mérignac is fully leveraging this boom, in particular with the presence of giants in the sector such as Dassault, Thalès and Sabena Technics. The city has announced the creation of 10,000 new jobs in the industry over the next ten years.
On the Bordeaux Mérignac airport site, for example, Sabena Technics has expanded considerably with the opening of a new 10,000-sq.m hangar. Its technical facilities have now reached 100,000 sq.m in Mérignac. As the leader on the European market in aircraft maintenance, the firm is making the most of airline and fleet development. It has invested €25 million in this sixth hangar and hired 150 staff members in 2019. The aim is to reach €600 million in turnover by 2021.
The firm already boasts a headcount of 2,200 in France, including 850 in Mérignac, and plans to continue hiring at the same pace through to 2021. In a bid to offset shortages in some professions, such as avionicians, Sabena Technics has joined forces with Aerocampus Aquitaine in order to attract new applicants to the industry with the creation of classes focussing specifically on the firm.
