Air India’s Bengaluru MRO facility rollout delayed to ‘27

Delays are driven by difficulties in locally sourcing high-grade steel and specialized bolts

- Dipali Banka

The 35-acre site will eventually house 12 hangar bays for both narrow-body and wide-body aircraft.

Air India has pushed the start of its maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facility at Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru by at least a year to January-March 2027, as construction remains unfinished, according to three people familiar with the matter.

The airline’s inability to source construction materials including steel and bolts from domestic manufacturers is the key reason for the delay.

Planned on a 35-acre site, the facility, designed with 12 hangar bays to service narrow-body and wide-body aircraft, is still under construction, one of the persons quoted said, requesting anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue.

In its first phase it will have 3 wide-body and 2 narrow-body hangar bays. Hangars are spaces where aircrafts are parked, maintained, and repaired. As of April, Air India has 126 narrow-body and 60 wide-body jets.