Thirty-five people will be made redundant at Aircraft Services Bermuda Ltd (ASB) following the closure of certain parts of the company’s airport operations, parent company Bermuda Aviation Services (BAS) announced yesterday.All of the positions are filled by Bermudians.ASB’s commercial aircraft ramp operations, passenger and check-in services and aircraft technical services will all shut and the company is negotiating the sale of its related equipment, BAS said in a statement.The closures, which come into effect on August 31, are due to financial pressure from commercial airlines looking to contain costs and the impact of competition.ASB has been operating at LF Wade International Airport for more than 60 years.“These are business segments that ASB operated on a thin or sub-marginal basis as it was a broader corporate objective to keep Bermudians employed,” read the statement.“Whilst we are appreciative of Government’s intent to encourage competition in the aviation handling service sector, BAS has always held the view that Bermuda, as a jurisdiction, is too small for multiple service providers.”Ken Joaquin, president and CEO of BAS, which employs more than 200 staff, said that it was not possible to assimilate the 35 employees in the other parts of the company due to the different skill sets, but added that the company would retain seven staff to continue to operate its cargo customer service division providing cargo clearance and handling services, its garage service providing internal and external vehicular maintenance and the private jet base.“The commercial airlines have been putting pressure on our rates for the last couple of years as they look to cut their own costs where they can and as a result our revenue has been getting thinner and thinner,” he said.Mr Joaquin said that new rivals Renaissance Aviation, who had the contracts for British Airways, American Airlines and Air Canada, had been able to put in more competitively-priced bids due to lower labour costs and he did not see the market as being big enough for the two companies in the future.He said that BAS would continue to focus on the private jet business and becoming the “ultimate service company” in Bermuda, adding that aviation didn’t fit into that portfolio.BAS chairman, Michael Darling, said: “It has been an emotional and difficult decision as these segments of ASB’s operations have been a part of the legacy upon which BAS has grown to the diversified group of companies that it is today. BAS was born in aviation. It is always challenging when one has to separate personal attachment to reach a pragmatic business decision and this is no exception. We are very cognisant and appreciative of the contribution of countless men and women who have been a part of ASB over the last 60 years.”Recently renovated and rebranded as the LOM Executive Jet Facility in conjunction with the LOM Group, the private jet base serves approximately 3,000 flights per year as Bermuda’s premier gateway for executive travel.Mr Joaquin added: “It is always our intention to position our company where it affords maximum shareholder value for those that invest in us. This strategic initiative should assist us in achieving this goal.”