MONTREAL -- Former Aveos employees plan to demonstrate outside a Quebec courthouse Tuesday as their lawyers oppose a recommendation to sell the insolvent aircraft maintenance firm's engine repair business to Lufthansa Technik.
The head of the machinists union said it may seek a delay or injunction to prevent the sale of this segment of the business despite Air Canada's insistence that a deal be concluded by Wednesday.
Chuck Atkinson, district chairman of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, said the German company won't preserve jobs in Canada while a competing bid from Vancouver-based MTU Aero Engines would.
But the court-appointed chief restructuring officer says both bids "appeared to be equal" in terms of jobs creation in Quebec, although the MTU would create up to 130 jobs in Vancouver.
In any case, Jonathan Solursh says those extra jobs won't likely go to former Aveos employees since the B.C. centre focused on airframe overhaul.
In a report to the court, he says MTU's offered price was about half the price offered by Lufthansa.
Lufthansa doesn't have an engine repair facility in Canada but plans to set up a small shop in Montreal employing about 15 workers to fulfil part of the service requirements of Air Canada. Most of the work will be carried out at its facilities overseas.
MTU doesn't service the airline's engine model and would need to make significant investments in tooling, training, certification and infrastructure to service the Air Canada contract. These extra costs have "materially diminished" funds available to bid on the Air Contract, Solursh said.
Also, MTU required that the sale of some Aveos tooling and equipment be included, which would reduce the liquidation value available to creditors.
