OGMA – Indústria Aeronáutica de Portugal S.A. is a Portuguese aerospace company focused on
aircraft maintenance and
manufacturing
Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to ...
.
History
OGMA was founded as part of the reorganisation of the
Portuguese Army's Aeronautic Service on June 29, 1918, under the name Parque de Material Aeronáutico (Aeronautics Material Depot), and was responsible for storing, repairing, manufacturing, and providing aeronautical material. In addition, OGMA provided training to military aeronautics personnel. Ten years later it was renamed Oficinas Gerais de Material Aeronáutico (General Workshops of Aeronautical Material). In 1994, the company was renamed OGMA - Indústria Aeronáutica de Portugal S.A.
OGMA began manufacturing the
Caudron G-3 aircraft in 1922. This was followed by the manufacture, under English license, of the
Vickers Valparaiso in 1933, the
Avro 626 and
de Havilland Tiger Moth aircraft in 1938, and the construction of 66
DHC-1 Chipmunks in 1952. Three years later, OGMA sign its first contract with the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
. In 1959, it signed a contract with the
US Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sig ...
. In 1972, OGMA signed a manufacturing contract with
Eurocopter Group
Airbus Helicopters SAS (formerly Eurocopter Group) is the helicopter manufacturing division of Airbus. It is the largest in the industry in terms of revenues and turbine helicopter deliveries. Its head office is located at Marseille Provence Ai ...
. Throughout the 1970s, the company performed maintenance on
C-130 Hercules
The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally desi ...
,
P-3 Orion and
SA 300 Puma aircraft.
In 1993, OGMA became a
Rolls-Royce Authorised Maintenance Center for the
T56,
AE 2100 and
AE 3007A engines and, five years later, became an Authorised Maintenance Center for Embraer
ERJ 145 aircraft.
[ Since 1994 OGMA has manufactured most of the Pilatus PC-12's major structural components, including fuselage, wings, cargo and passenger doors, flaps, ailerons, rudder and wiring harnesses. In 2001, the company was contracted for repairs and modifications to 40 ]F-16
The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is a single-engine multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it evolved into a successf ...
aircraft belonging to the Portuguese Air Force. In 2004, OGMA was privatised, and its ownership distributed between Embraer
Embraer S.A. () is a Brazilian multinational aerospace manufacturer that produces commercial, military, executive and agricultural aircraft, and provides aeronautical services. It was founded in 1969 in São José dos Campos, São Paulo, where ...
and EMPORDEF. On July 10, 2006, OGMA inaugurated the Executive Jets Center, created to improve the maintenance services of the Embraer Legacy 600
The Embraer Legacy 600 is a business jet derivative of the Embraer ERJ 145 family of commercial jet aircraft.
Design and development
The Legacy 600 (market designation adopted after 2005) is based on the ERJ-135 model. It was launched in 2000 ...
and future business jets developed by Embraer. Since 2013, OGMA has been involved in the Embraer KC-390's development program, including central fuselage manufacturing, fairing, metallic alloys, composite materials and elevons. OGMA participated in the initial phase of the aircraft's development and assumed responsibility for supply chain
In commerce, a supply chain is a network of facilities that procure raw materials, transform them into intermediate goods and then final products to customers through a distribution system. It refers to the network of organizations, people, activ ...
development and management, primarily relying upon Portuguese companies.
In 2016, OGMA recorded a sales volume of 195.4 million Euros and a profit of 10.1 million Euros. In 2019, the company appointed Alexandre Solis as Chief Executive Officer. In 2017, aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul
Aircraft maintenance is the performance of tasks required to ensure the continuing airworthiness of an aircraft or aircraft part, including overhaul, inspection, replacement, defect rectification, and the embodiment of modifications, compliance w ...
services accounted for about 70% of OGMA's total business volume. , OGMA serviced approximately 40 clients from 70 countries.
OGMA was criticised in 2020 by the Portuguese Office for the Prevention and Investigation of Accidents in Civil Aviation and Rail for faulty maintenance work that led to severe flight control problems with Air Astana Flight 1388 in 2018. The investigation found that insufficient quality assurance
Quality assurance (QA) is the term used in both manufacturing and service industries to describe the systematic efforts taken to ensure that the product(s) delivered to customer(s) meet with the contractual and other agreed upon performance, design ...
, oversight and management at OGMA contributed to the severe technical problems suffered by the aircraft in flight.
OGMA is responsible for the fabrication of several parts for the Embraer C-390 Millennium
The Embraer C-390 Millennium is a medium-size, twin-engine, jet-powered military transport aircraft designed and produced by the Brazilian aerospace manufacturer Embraer. It is the heaviest aircraft the company has constructed to date.
Work on ...
, including the center fuselage
The fuselage (; from the French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an engine as well, although in some amphibious aircraft t ...
, the fabrication and assembly of the right and left sponson
Sponsons are projections extending from the sides of land vehicles, aircraft or watercraft to provide protection, stability, storage locations, mounting points for weapons or other devices, or equipment housing.
Watercraft
On watercraft, a spon ...
s, and the depth rudders. It is also responsible for the assembly of various standard NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two N ...
equipment for the Portuguese Air Force C-390s.
Facilities
OGMA is located in Alverca
Alverca do Ribatejo () is a city (''cidade'') and a former civil parish in the municipality of Vila Franca de Xira, Portugal. In 2013, the parish merged into the new parish Alverca do Ribatejo e Sobralinho.
It covers an area of and had a popu ...
, in the Alverca Aeronautical Park, approximately north east of Lisbon International Airport. Its facilities occupy , of which are covered facilities. The location also includes a runway and a control tower. Its facilities comprise 11 hangars for civil and military aircraft maintenance, manufacturing and testing.
References
Bibliography
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Aerospace companies of Portugal
Manufacturing companies established in 1918
Government-owned companies of Portugal
Portuguese brands
Airbus joint ventures
Embraer
Manufacturing plants in Portugal
Portuguese companies established in 1918
Defence companies of Portugal
Aircraft maintenance companies