Air India moves to sever MRO links with Turkiye

The beneficiaries of any such move are expected to be MRO operations in the Middle East, Southeast Asia and the USA.

Meanwhile, IndiGo has been directed by the country’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to terminate a contract with Turkish Airlines under which it damp-leases two Boeing 777 aircraft from the Turkish flag-carrier. The current contract is understood to end on 31 August.

The Times of India said the moves come in the wake of Turkey’s vocal support for Pakistan in the recent flare-up of hostilities in Kashmir and  criticism of India’s anti-terror operations. The newspaper, citing an interview by the Press Trust of Indian (PTI) with Air India chief executive Campbell Wilson, quoted Wilson as saying: “It does take awhile to adjust when the circumstances change around us, but we are obviously sensitive to the national sentiment and perhaps national wishes.

“With this most recent development, we will look to recalibrate where we send our aircraft, reduce the amount that we are sending to Turkiye and send [them] to other places.

“We are cognisant of recent developments and we will look to adjust our plans.”

Wilson noted that aviation MRO is embedded in a global business framework, aircraft maintenance was mandatory and the airline would still have to send its aircraft abroad for heavy checks. “It will take some time for India to have the capacity to do such work,” he added.

It is understood that Turkish Technic currently carries out heavy maintenance on aircraft from Air India Boeing 777 and 787 types. It operates 64 widebodies among its fleet of 191 aircraft.

On 15 May, DGCA also revoked the security clearance of Turkish company Celebi Airport Services India, which provides ground handling services at nine Indian airports including Delhi and Mumbai, on “national security” concerns.