AAR and Indamer Aviation opened their joint venture MRO in India and inducted the first aircraft.

The JV, officially opened on July 24, inducted launch customer IndiGo’s first aircraft, an Airbus A320-200.

The facility in Nagpur, India received its India DGCA maintenance facility approval on April 8. FAA approval might take another six months due to travel restrictions caused by the pandemic.

AAR-Indamer Technics has 150 employees and expect to grow to 500 or more within 12-18 months, says Rajeev Gupta, CEO of the JV.

The first phase includes four hangars and an engine run-up bay, and the second phase could include eight additional bays.

Indamer, a 75-year-old general aviation MRO in India, brings the local experience and AAR contributes its digital systems, standards and Lean processes to the MRO JV.

AAR and Indamer announced the JV in early 2018 and expected to open it later that year. The timing slipped.

In an interview with Aviation Week in January 2020, AAR CEO John Holmes said, “India considers to be a work in process. It's our first time doing anything like this in India, so we've learned along the way. Things have taken longer than our initial expectations, but the long-term market opportunity remains compelling.”