GIFAS strengthens its presence in Southeast Asia with a new office in Singapore

GIFAS, The French Aerospace Industries Association, is federating the French pavilion in 2026’s edition of the Singapore Airshow, gathering some 30 companies representing the core of the French aerospace industry. This occasion also marks the opening of a GIFAS office based at Safran’s regional headquarters in Singapore. The Southeast Asia French Aerospace Network (SEAFAN) will be headed by David Dufrenois, ASEAN Regional Delegate & CEO of Safran Singapore. Amine Chehri is appointed by the GIFAS as its regional co-ordinator.

GIFAS’ decision to open its regional office in Singapore is a strategic decision, at a time when the Franco-Singapore relation enjoys an excellent level of cooperation at the highest political level.

Today, 30 GIFAS members, spanning the entire value chain from OEMs and system integrators to Tier-1 suppliers, engineering services, digital solutions and logistics, are established in Singapore. They represent more than 4 000 direct jobs, accounting for 18% of the global aerospace workforce in Singapore.

French companies rely on Singapore as an operational base and a regional hub to support their development across Asia-Pacific, structure their regional activities and strengthen their competitiveness in fast-growing markets.

The main objectives for this office will be to act as a bridge between French and Singaporean industrial players, by:

● Identifying local needs and expectations in terms of partnerships,

● Supporting French companies willing to set either JVs or green fields in Singapore,

● Supporting both French and Singaporean companies on regulatory aspects,

● Organizing networking events.

GIFAS will work on building a joint roadmap with its local sister organization AAIS (Association of Aerospace Industries Singapore), covering both civilian and military markets.

Regarding civil aviation, considering the growth of air transportation, GIFAS aims to support the development of maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) in Singapore. In the path of the ICAO 2022 declaration to reach a carbon neutral aviation by 2050, France and Singapore have a key role to play to reach the target. The production and use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), alongside new aircraft designs and optimized traffic management, are the main priorities. 

Regarding the Defence industry, beyond the existing partnership between French air forces and the acquisition of French equipment by the Singaporean MoD, the main axis of cooperation lies in innovation. French players have several joint labs with local entities. GIFAS, with its 100 startups and its legacy members, which reinvest an average of 9% of their turnover in R&D, will focus on supporting enhanced cooperation in the field of innovation.

With the development of a new space economy linked to multiple applications in the civilian and defence sectors, and a growing need for owning sovereign systems, GIFAS will work with its local partners to organize a fruitful match for the benefit of space players.

Achieving the ramp-up in both civil and defence sectors requires industrial capabilitieswhich give opportunities to new entrants. In the meantime, industry needs to increase the global performance of the productiontool. To achieve this goal, GIFAS has created Aero Excellence™ International, an initiative focused on strengthening industrial performance across the global aerospace supply chain.

Aero Excellence promotes operational excellence through a common assessment framework with awards recognized by the aerospace community. Its objective is to enhance competitiveness and resilience of suppliers worldwide. Aero Excellence sees Singapore as a strategic partner with significant opportunities to collaborate. To date, 7 Singaporean suppliers have already joined the program.

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