Air France-KLM's engineering division and Safran Group firm Aircelle are establishing a Middle Eastern joint venture for nacelle repair, to be stationed at Dubai.

The 50:50 venture will be located at the Jebel Ali free zone.

Air France Industries and KLM Engineering & Maintenance state that the Aircelle venture will cover services on a range of nacelles from Rolls-Royce, General Electric, CFM International and Pratt & Whitney powerplants.

The partners says the "sizeable fleets" of Airbus A320-family jets, A330/340s, A380s and Boeing 777s in the Middle East region were a "driving factor" towards creating the venture.

"With its close proximity to customers throughout the Middle East, the joint venture will be positioned to provide high-quality services that are reactive and competitive," they add.

Services will also include spares management and provision of assistance to carriers' maintenance programmes.

Air France Industries says the venture is set to begin operations at the end of this year.