Air India invests further in Bangalore facilities
The upcoming MRO facility, being built on a 35-acre land parcel at the Bangalore International Airport will become an important hub for Air India group airlines’ aircraft maintenance operations in the region, as the airline modernizes its fleet and expands its global operations.
“India’s aviation sector is on a growth trajectory and Air India is playing a leading role in this,” Air India Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Campbell Wilson.
“The Bengaluru MRO facility is coming up at an opportune time to help strengthen India’s aviation ecosystem, while enhancing our in-house capabilities to maintain our fleet.
“This is a step ahead in our mission to make Air India a world-class airline,” he said.
Once completed, the MRO is expected to generate over 1,200 new job opportunities for skilled aviation engineers in India, and support over 200 SMEs in Karnataka through an enhanced supply chain. These new ventures are projected to create further employment opportunities, strengthening the MRO ecosystem in the state.
The MRO will also support Air India’s plans to make Bengaluru as one of its key hubs, boosting direct connectivity to global destinations.
The upcoming MRO will feature a mega hangar to accommodate wide body and narrow body aircraft under a single roof for Base Maintenance.
The facility’s capacity will be further expanded to include additional hangars for servicing more aircraft, including paint hangar.
Equipped with latest aircraft maintenance technology, including overhead tele platforms, cranes, universal docking systems, and the largest vertical lift hangar doors in the country, this MRO facility will be setting a new standard in aviation maintenance at par with any MRO in the world.
The Bengaluru MRO facility, expansion of in-housed Line Maintenance (routine maintenance of aircraft in operation) facilities across the network, and the recently refurbished wide body aircraft hangar in Mumbai, will make Air India more self-reliant in the maintenance of its entire fleet from 2025.
Air India also plans to build a new wide body hangar in Delhi to cater to Line Maintenance requirements. This will help develop a complete maintenance ecosystem at all major airports. Air India is also ensuring availability of trained type-rated personnel for maintenance function of different type of fleet by obtaining approval for CAR-147 for its training academy.
Besides, Air India plans to open a Basic Maintenance Training Organisation (BMTO) in 2025, in Bengaluru, to ensure continuous inflow of trained personnel for aircraft maintenance and engineering activities.
This will create opportunities for engineering students to receive training to become type-rated engineer for certification.
Air India, in recent times, has strengthened its operational capabilities through strategic agreements, including the 12-year Inventory Technical Management (ITM) agreement with SIAEC to support its Airbus A320 family fleet, improving component reliability and support.
The airline has entered into a multi-year agreement with Lufthansa Technik for Total Component Support (TCS) for its Boeing 777 fleet and secured a long-term agreement with Honeywell for Auxiliary Power Unit (APU) aftermarket support for both existing and new fleet.
These partnerships will not only enhance its maintenance and operational efficiency but also ensure high reliability and availability of its operating aircraft.