The new Air India facility will have 12 hangars with a capacity to induct three widebody aircraft for base maintenance at a time.
Indian MRO ecosystem is witnessing a dynamic shift as Air India sets the stage for breaking ground on one of the first-of-its-kind base maintenance facilities at Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport. The MRO facility spread over 35 acres of land is a first-of-its-kind partnership between an airline – Air India, the government of Karnataka and Bengaluru International Airport.
The upcoming base maintenance facility is a pet project of Gunjan Krishna, Commissioner for Industrial Development and Director, Department of Industries & Commerce, Government of Karnataka. She was rooting for the project along with Air India, as it has marked Bengaluru as one of the major aviation hubs in India. The new facility will have 12 hangars with a capacity to induct three widebody aircraft for base maintenance at a time. The Bengaluru facility has garnered an investment of INR 1400 crore in Phase I of development with more investments and expansion plans on the radar.
The ground-breaking ceremony of the base maintenance facility was attended by Gunjan Krishna, Commissioner for Industrial Development & Director, Department of Industries & Commerce, Government of Karnataka, Hari Marar, Managing Director and CEO of Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL), Chin Yau Seng, CEO, SIA Engineering Company, along with a senior leadership team of Air India leadership. The airline plans to build this state-of-art facility along with SIA Engineering Services (SIAEC).
Speaking during the ground breaking ceremony, Campbell Wilson, chief executive, Air India was extremely proud and happy to launch this important milestone. “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,” Wilson added.
Hailing the state of Karnataka for taking the lead in aviation sector with Bengaluru set to emerge as an important global aviation hub, Gunjan Krishnan patted Air India on the back for quick action on the MRO facility.
“The ground breaking of this MRO is an important step towards strengthening the fleet maintenance capabilities and infrastructure offering,” says Hari Marar, chief executive, BIAL. “This development will not only enhance regional connectivity and drive economic growth but also create valuable opportunities for local talent and businesses, reinforcing Bengaluru’s position as an important player in the aviation ecosystem.”
Sisira Dash, chief technical officer, Air India threw light on how Air India is developing its in-house MRO capabilities and making great strides in becoming self-reliant in terms of its new fleet maintenance. Speaking during the ground breaking ceremony he went on to thank the Government of Karnataka and BIAL for helping Air India achieve this milestone in a very short span of time.
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Upon completion the MRO will create about 1200 highly skilled job in the regions in and around Bengaluru creating a strong aerospace ecosystem in the region. For this, the airline is also coming up with its Basic Maintenance Training Organisation (BMTO) in Bengaluru by 2025. This will take care of the rising demand of skilled AMEs in India’s MRO environment and enable the airline to continue with smooth and efficient organisations.
