Hyderabad, February 23, 2021 : The GMR Group has been a pioneer in implementing various innovative solutions across the airports it operates. GMR led Delhi and Hyderabad airports, have been leveraging the best of technologies: E-boarding, Face Recognition trials, Contact – less Self Check-in Kiosks, Self-Bag Drops, Contactless Information Desk etc. to name a few. In continuum with this streak, GMR Aero Technic (GAT), the MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul) division of GMR Air Cargo and Aerospace Engineering Ltd. (GACAEL), has taken a giant leap in terms of aircraft maintenance and service in Asia, by adopting a new innovative technology in the form of an Inflatable Hangar. GAT is the only MRO in the Asia region to have installed such a hangar. The Inflatable Hangar may be used for multiple purposes including scheduled and unscheduled maintenance, engine or landing gear replacement.

The one bay narrow body Inflatable Hangar is sufficient to take one B737 or A320 series aircraft which will add one additional bay to GAT’s already existing 7 bay capacity. With this additional line, GAT would be able handle additionally 15 to 20 smaller base maintenance checks or 4 to 5 end of lease checks per year.

It takes considerable amount of time to source an available hangar to undertake the unscheduled repairs. On the contrary, an Inflatable Hangar is cost-effective, reduces downtime to a minimum and saves time and money as compared to building a conventional hangar, at the same time catering for all the functionality, safety features and structural stability of the conventional hangar.

The life of an Inflatable Hangar is 10-15 years. It is available in various sizes and made to order. Whereas the construction of a conventional hangar takes more than 18 months, the Inflatable Hangar can be constructed in 3-4 months. The Inflatable Hangar is also portable. It takes just 1-2 months to disassembly and assembly at other location. It is by far the most cost effective & quickest way to add additional capacity as compared to building a conventional hangar or taking similar facility on rent/lease.

The Inflatable Hangar is formed by low pressure tubes aligned parallel to each other forming a "rib-cage" structure. This woven polyester base cloth with PVC coating hangar is both fire-retardant and water-proof. An Automatic Control System will be installed in the hangar, to continuously monitor and control operative parameters. The hangar is designed to withstand wind speeds up to 158.4 km/hr and can handle temperatures from -30 degree Celsius to +70 degree Celsius which makes it a perfect alternative for conventional solid metal hangars which are both expensive and time consuming to build.

Mr. Ashok Gopinath, CEO, GMR Aero Technic, said, “The latest addition of this Inflatable Hangar to our MRO will help us take additional business and support our customers in meeting their timelines and commitments of aircraft operations and redeliveries. Such hangars are used as a proper alternative to conventional hangars by MROs in Europe and GCC for many years now. In the long term, we are looking at adding a couple of more hangars aimed at upgrading to include wide body aircraft capability including painting, certain critical components workshops and military MRO business. GAT has been very proactive in constantly looking at new technologies and adopting them to enhance business needs.”

The Inflatable Hangar will serve as a dedicated base maintenance facility complementing existing facility in GMR Aero Technic, Hyderabad and help in optimizing the already available resources in terms of manpower, tooling, support workshop etc. The Inflatable Hangar is equipped with doors, lighting, fire detection & extinguishing and ventilation system with centralized computer-based monitoring system including remote diagnostics. It is designed and built for regular continuous usage.

Additional information about GMR Aero Technic -

• GMR Aero Technic has completed 570+ major checks till date and other ad-hoc maintenance work. With its enhanced capacity, on an average GAT will be able to perform over 100 maintenance checks per year depending upon the nature of the checks. The clientele of GMR Aero Technic includes all domestic airlines. It also has both base and line maintenance customers from~17 countries. GAT remains focused to increase its international footprint.

• GMR Aero Technic is coming up with a DGCA and EASA approved, Aircraft Maintenance Engineering School for maintenance personnel which will provide ab-initio course in aircraft maintenance to Indian & International students. This will be a green field project, where a new campus will be built closer to its present MRO facility in Hyderabad. This centre of excellence will be affiliated to reputed International training organizations. The school is expected to be operational by the end of 2021.

• Recently GMR Aero Technic has signed an MoU with Airbus and will be collaborating with it in areas of synergies in the field of MRO, warehousing, cargo and airports.

• GMR Aero Technic has also set up a reputed calibration facility accredited by NABL (National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories) & ILAC (International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation) for calibration of precision aviation instruments.

• Catering to various International customers, GMR Aero Technic currently has eight Operational stations across India including Kathmandu in Nepal for Line Maintenance. It is also planning to add four more Line stations across the country in the coming financial year.

• In addition to DGCA-India, FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) and EASA (European Aviation Safety Agency) Part 145 approvals, GAT has 21 other International Regulatory approvals from various countries to support International customers. Additionally, GAT is approved by AS9110, DGAQA and CEMILAC to perform Defense MRO work.

• GMR Aero Technic has a dedicated paint hangar and this state-of-art-facility is designed to deliver the highest standards of paint job and is equipped with an extraction system, waste management, docks and mega doors.

Industry recognition of GMR Aero Technic –

• GMR Aero Technic won the ‘Best Outreach MRO’ of the year award at Aero MRO India 2018, New Delhi for bringing in maximum International business and offering services to a wide range of customers.

• GMR Aero Technic won the ‘Best Management Award 2018’ from Government of Telangana for its outstanding contribution in the areas of industrial relation and employees’ welfare activities.

• GMR Aero Technic has stood in 1st place in the prestigious CII Southern Region 5S Excellence Award 2018-19, under large-scale Industry – Service Category.

• GAT won the ‘Best MRO of the year award’ at Aero MRO India 2019, New Delhi for completing 500 C-Checks.

• GAT has been recognized and awarded with “The Best MRO” at Wings India 2020 event, which was organized by FICCI and Ministry of Civil Aviation