Flight technician Abhiram Singh moved to Dubai at the first opportunity, citing long 12-hour workdays, low salary, and poor maintenance of aircraft in India as key reasons for his decision.
As per media report, Now working with Emirates in Dubai, he says the difference in aircraft maintenance between India and Dubai is like night and day.
“In India, the ground staff does just one round of checks at base, while in Dubai, three to four rounds of checks take place for each aircraft. There’s also no guarantee that engineers will show up for this test in India. The quality of checks is very poor,” he said.
As of March 2025, 16 per cent of India’s fleet, approximately 133 aircraft, is grounded.
Go Airlines was the worst affected in FY2024, grounding nearly half of its fleet due to faulty engines. IndiGo also faced challenges, with around 60 to 70 aircraft grounded as of January 30, 2025.
According to a Niti Aayog report on Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO), supply chain issues and engine failures continue to hamper the growth of India’s aviation engine sector.
Despite ongoing challenges, India remains optimistic about building a robust Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) industry. With the country poised to become the third-largest buyer of commercial aircraft after the US and China, the demand for efficient MRO services is expected to soar.
India aims to service 90 per cent of its MRO needs domestically by 2040, striving to position itself as a global MRO hub. Currently, the Indian MRO sector relies heavily on foreign service providers, but the government is actively pushing for local development.
The aging global aircraft fleet is also driving up maintenance costs and increasing the risk of in-flight failures, further underlining the need for reliable MRO services. According to NITI Aayog, India’s MRO industry is projected to grow from $1.7 billion in 2021 to $4 billion by 2031, at a compound annual growth rate of 8.9 per cent.
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