Mallaghan, a global leader in the manufacturing of airport ground support equipment (GSE), returned to profit in 2021 as the aviation industry began to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic.

In annual accounts filed at Companies House for the 12-month period to 31st December 2021, the company recorded profit before tax of £983,278 following a loss of £1,133,333 in the previous year.

Turnover reduced to £32,929,354, compared to £41,798,210 in 2020, however the business, which exports to more than 100 countries, expects that figure to improve significantly in the next financial year.

Ronan Mallaghan, Managing Director at Mallaghan said:

“Air travel across the globe remained subdued in 2021 as the Covid-19 pandemic continued to impact the entire industry.

“We took the opportunity to introduce new efficiencies, invest in R&D and new products and placed a strategic focus on exploring new geographical markets, particularly in the United States and China.

“That approach is now paying dividends with order books full as demand for Mallaghan products increases to fuel the uplift in air travel.

“As a result, we are anticipating sales to return to pre-pandemic levels in the next financial year and are actively recruiting across the group as we ramp up production levels to meet the increased workloads.”

Headquartered in Dungannon with additional operations in Atlanta, Georgia, Mallaghan designs and manufacturers GSE including Airport Buses, Fire Rescue Stairs, Catering Trucks, De-icers, Passenger Stairs and Maintenance Platform Lifts.

Clients include Aer Lingus, British Airways, China Eastern Airlines, Delta, easyJet, Emirates, Etihad, Menzies Aviation, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Ryanair, SAS and Swissport.