NAVHOUSE CORPORATION ACQUIRES NORTHSTAR AEROSPACE’S INERTIAL NAVIGATION AVIONICS MRO BUSINESS

Toronto, Ontario – Glynn Williams, President and CEO of Reliance Aerotech Inc., announced the formation of Navhouse Corporation and its acquisition of the business and assets of Northstar Aerospace (Canada) Inc.’s inertial navigation avionics MRO business, Navhouse Global Avionics, located in Bolton, Ontario.

“We are delighted to welcome Navhouse into the Reliance Group of aviation businesses,” stated Williams in making the announcement. “As a global leader over the past ten years in the repair and overhaul of inertial navigation components and systems for aircraft, land and marine platforms, Navhouse has a demonstrated record of providing commercial and military customers excellent technical service and support on a global basis. Navhouse is an excellent fit with our base business of providing specialized MRO services to demanding customers who employ sophisticated avionics systems. We continue to seek excellent acquisition and other growth opportunities as the outsourcing trend continues within our industry.”

Donald K. Jackson, Executive Chairman of Northstar Aerospace, Inc. (TSX-NAS) said, “the Reliance Aerotech Group is an ideal organization to acquire this specialized business, and we are pleased to sell this business to them.”

“The Reliance Group offers Navhouse the opportunity to develop new relationships among both civilian and military customers, drawing upon their experience in the US and in the avionics area”, said Michael Butterworth, General Manager. “Our experienced workforce, that includes highly skilled electromechanical technicians, looks forward to joining this dynamic organization”.

Inertial navigation systems (INS) are used in most commercial passenger, cargo and many military aircraft, providing highly accurate position, route tracking and destination information to the flight deck, all without any external navigational references. Often used in combination with other navigational systems, such as GPS and radio fixes when and where available, an INS provides highly dependable navigational information.

About Navhouse Corporation

Navhouse, an affiliate of Reliance Aerotech, supplies and provides maintenance, repair and overhaul services for navigation systems and sub-assemblies including, INUs, CDUs, MSUs, inertial platforms, gyros and accelerometers, to Level IV standard. The Company is an Approved Maintenance Organization, licensed by Transport Canada, the Federal Aviation Administration and the European Aviation Safety Agency, with avionics and instrument certification. The Company is certified to ISO 9001:2000 and SAE AS9100B. The Company has one of the most experienced electromechanical technical teams in the world, specializing in inertial systems.

Navhouse meets the industry’s requirement for equipment life extension by rigid adherence to standards, restoring equipment to original specification, thus securing in-service reliability and operator confidence. System integrity meets or exceeds OEM specification and standards. The Company operates a world-wide service network with a rotable spares depot and system test capabilities. With its in-house capabilities, it provides:

• 24-hr AOG support
• Units for loan, lease, and core exchanges
• Large rotable spares pool to expedite Customer turnaround times
• Customized maintenance agreements
• Continental rotable pools and systems sales
• Inventory consignment management
• Test and evaluation of both systems and instruments to determine serviceability

For 2006, the total annual global expenditure on commercial and military avionics MRO is estimated to be US$3.5 billion, with their respective CAGR forecast to be 3.6% and 2.3%.

The Navhouse acquisition reflects Reliance Aerotech’s experience in the avionics sector as an owner and operator of leading aircraft repair stations specializing in avionics repair and overhaul. Over the past several years, Reliance Aerotech, has grown its presence within the sector, providing avionics MRO personnel and solutions to many of North America’s leading aircraft maintenance organizations.
 

For further information, please contact:

Douglas Anweiler, Vice President, Corporate Marketing and Communications
416.203.8493 x223; e-mail: danweiler@relianceaerotech.com