Air Works comemorates an incredible 74 years of service

16 Apr 2024

A full house of aircraft – Commercial and Business – undergoing maintenance at Air Works’ Group’s comprehensive.
Maintenance facility at Hosur, Tamil Nadu

NEW DELHI / INDIA: India’s leading independent MRO turns 74!

Air Works Group - India’s most loved MRO and aviation services major, celebrates the 73rd anniversary of its operations today. It was on this day in 1951, barely four years after India’s independence, that Air Works commenced its pioneering business under its co-founders – aircraft engineers Late Mr. BG Menon and Late Mr. PS Menon -– at the Mumbai airport. Over the past seven decades, Air Works has grown and transformed from a pureplay business aviation and MRO services company to one with the industry’s widest portfolio of customers and certifications to maintain over 50 types of aircraft, across several types of commercial, business, and defense aircraft, together with multiple maintenance facilities and a pan-India support network across 27 cities at over 50 locations.

The company marked this momentous achievement via a multi-city event that connected its pan-India offices LIVE for the first time, with celebrations that included extensive leadership engagement and a rewards & recognition for key performers and contributors who have demonstrated Air Works’ values of Passion, Perseverance and Professionalism across the various aspects of its business including Business excellence, Customer first, and keeping alive its Fly Assured promise.

Commenting on the historic milestone, Mr. D Anand Bhaskar, MD & CEO, Air Works Group said, “To lead a 74-year iconic organization such as Air Works is a matter of immense pride as well as an indescribable feeling for me. Air Works is not only regarded as an MRO institution and a well reputed industry benchmark, but it has also become a manifestation of Atmanirbhar Bharat all around us. Much as we are enjoying and celebrating this milestone, we have already begun looking ahead eagerly and excitedly, towards the upcoming year, when we turn 75! I thank our customers who have given us their trust and opportunities to assure their flights as well as greet and congratulate all our employees for their hard work, steadfastness, and innovation that has kept our engineering flag flying high, over decades.”

Air Works Group was India’s first privately owned, independent MRO in India to create an EASA-certified maintenance facility for airlines in India at Hosur, Tamil Nadu in 2008-09 after realizing the need and advantages of having an indigenous facility ahead of time. Since then, the company has expanded its maintenance capacities significantly, inaugurating a second, state-of-the-art maintenance facility at the Cochin International Airport, for both business and commercial aircraft, designed specially to offer added flexibility to customers, together with another dedicated facility for maintenance of large business jets such as the Embraer ERJ-135. The company has undertaken over 500 C-Checks to date, supported by in-house EASA & DGCAcertified shops to provide comprehensive structure and composite repairs, battery support, cabin interiors, component repairs, heat exchangers, painting, and others.

Dr. Vandana Aggarwal, Sr. Economic Advisor (Retd.), Ministry of Civil Aviation, who graced the event as the Guest of Honor, congratulated the 1400+ strong Air Works family on the milestone, lauding their commitment and underlining the need to continue delivering outstanding work in the increasingly competitive scenario, backed by top-notch quality and an eagle-eyed customer focus, to sustain market leadership and relevance. She also urged Air Works to expand its heavy maintenance capabilities and innovation envelope, leverage upcoming opportunities in civil-defense convergence, invest more in continued skilling, enhance workforce diversity, and heighten collaboration by using technology.


Reflecting his experience, Ravi Menon, Director, Air Works Group, remarked, “It’s a poignant moment for us. Looking back, one never imagined such a dynamic journey or even growing from 50-100 employees to more than 1400 today, including having an opportunity to train as well as work with some of the most passionate and innovative minds in the field of aviation engineering & maintenance, who have been with us or have passed through the Air Works corridors. Our strength has been our enduring culture and family values that foster collaboration, trust, and transparency. This has helped us successfully transform and remain a viable partner to those who depend on us. It has been an incredible journey with innumerable memories and treasured experiences, and I am deeply indebted to everyone who has been part of our journey, right from our customers and employees to the regulators, partners, and global OEMs who’ve supported and believed in us for over seven decades.”

A recipient of major awards such as the Best MRO provider, Air Works has been an attractive and a much sought after employer brand in the MRO sector since many years. Given Indian aviation’s anticipated growth, and the accompanying demand for skilled manpower, the company is increasingly sharpening its competitiveness and innovative edge using several measures such as heightened trainings, investment in career mapping, greater diversity, value alignment, cross-sector hirings and digitization to bring in the desired international levels of efficiency and accountability. Air Works is also India’s biggest international Line Maintenance service provider to foreign airlines and cargo operators, managing one in every three flights that take off from the country. Its group companies – SA Air Works and Acumen Aviation - offer highly specialized avionics and systems integration services, together with asset management services to clients in India and abroad.

Outlining the Group’s upcoming plans, Mr. Bhaskar added, “We continue to partner our indigenous customers and take steps to strengthen our service offerings. Additionally, with the strong business outcomes we endeavor to achieve in the time to come, we are improving our commercial focus, and augmenting capabilities in select verticals to attract a greater percentage of global business. We are looking at a healthy growth as we step towards an even more exciting and vibrant 75th year. As always, the cornerstones of our success remain our aviation passion, our philosophy of never saying no to customers, and our family-driven DNA.”


AIR WORKS GROUP

Established in 1951, Air Works Group is India’s biggest and highly diversified independent MRO with the largest panIndia network presence across 27 cities. It is the preferred MRO partner to global aviation OEMs, aircraft owners/operators (including fixed-wing & rotary-wing), lessors, airlines, and the Indian Defense Services, offering a host of services including MRO and heavy checks, line maintenance, cabin interior solutions, exterior finishing and painting, avionics upgrades, integrations and retrofits, end-of-lease/ redelivery checks, maintenance training (CAR 147), and asset management services to domestic and international clients.

Specialized services such as avionics, component repairs, and asset management services are offered via Group companies – SA Air Works and Acumen Aviation. Air Works undertakes base maintenance for ATR 42/72, A320, and B737 family of aircraft as well as medium and large business jets at its EASA and DGCA-certified facilities including Mumbai, Delhi, Hosur, and Kochi, supported by duly certified, in-house shops. The Company also undertakes modification and assembly of rotary-wing aircraft and is an Authorized Service Centre (ASC) for Bell and Leonardo helicopters.

Air Works enjoys an impeccable reputation in the industry for proven capabilities, outstanding workmanship, quality, and an exceptional safety orientation. The Company takes immense pride in its 71-Year aviation legacy and a culture that accords paramount importance to customers, which has allowed it to successfully deliver several India-first and industry-first projects. The Group is the recipient of several industry awards and was recently adjudged the Best MRO Service Provider by the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Govt. of India. For more details, visit https://www.airworks.aero