Gallery: News Roundup From MRO Middle East 2025

Etihad Engineering is targeting the doubling of revenues by 2030 along with adding significant hangar capacity in Abu Dhabi as part of a broader growth strategy. As part of an initiative called Al Massar—Arabic for “the path”—the Abu Dhabi-based company is setting out a large scope of initiatives aimed at growing the business both domestically and internationally, driving operational excellence and growing product capabilities in its portfolio. Daniel Hoffmann, appointed CEO of Etihad Engineering in 2023, says the MRO provider is aiming to double its revenues from around $270 million at the end of 2023 to $540 million by 2030. Etihad Engineering is also bringing several new hangars online from this year through 2028, which will significantly grow its maintenance lines in Abu Dhabi.

Another Etihad Engineering development was the signing of a partnership to become a regional licensed repair center for L3Harris Technologies. Under the terms of the agreement, Etihad Engineering will be a repair center for cockpit voice recorders and flight data recorders in the Middle East.

GE Aerospace is investing $10 million over two years at its two MROs in the Middle East to increase engine service capacity and capabilities in the region. Changes mostly focus on supporting CFM International Leap 1A and 1B engines, 750 of which operate with more than 20 airlines in the Middle East. However, the two GE Aerospace On Wing Support facilities in Dubai and Doha, Qatar, also are ramping up to support the GE9X engine that will power the Boeing 777X. The Middle East is the biggest market for this aircraft to date. The investment from 2024-25 at GE's Dubai and Doha facilities includes new tooling and equipment. This will enable additional Leap quick-turn maintenance and new work scopes, including durability improvements, module disassembly and hot section MRO. GE also is spending money on training to support those new capabilities and its planned 30% increase in staffing in the region.

IER MRO Industries, the maintenance business of industrial gas turbine specialist International Energy Resources, is looking to break ground this summer on its planned commercial engine overhaul and testing facility in Dubai, which will focus on narrowbody engine maintenance. Following the announcement of the planned location at Dubai South last year, Larry Howie, CEO and Chairman of the company that will operate as IER MRO Industries, said that the preliminary designs for the facility have been completed and approved for the planned 1.3 million-ft.² facility. “It’s a three-year program and we hope to have the test facility ready by the end of 2027 with the MRO to follow that in the first quarter of 2028,” said Howie, who reveals that the planned facility at the Dubai World Central area will focus initially on CFM International CFM56-7Bs, which it already holds a license for, and it eventually plans to add Leap 1A and 1B and International Aero Engines V2500 engine repair capability. 

Joramco expects to open a new hangar at the end of this quarter that can accommodate five lines of narrowbody maintenance or a combination of narrowbody and widebody aircraft as large as the Airbus A380. After the opening, Joramco, based in Amman, Jordan, will have 22 lines of parallel maintenance, making it one of the largest independent MRO shops in the Middle East. The new Hangar 7 is part of a $100 million investment in three hangars. Its twin, Hangar 8, is currently scheduled to be built in 2026. Hangar 9, scheduled for 2028, will be a paint hangar that simultaneously can house one widebody and one narrowbody or two narrowbodies. Given the MRO capacity challenges around the world, the 2026 and 2028 timeframes “could easily accelerate into a back-to-back contract” for the buildings, says Joramco CEO Fraser Currie.

Aviation tooling and ground support equipment specialist RH Aero Systems is expanding its presence in the Middle East with a new 22,000 m² facility at Dubai South’s Mohammed Bin Rashid Aerospace Hub (MBRAH). The facility will span four units and will become the company's regional hub for ground support equipment and tooling services. The facility is set to open later this year and will target regional airline, MRO and OEM customers.
 

Hong Kong-based maintenance provider HAECO has announced a new partnership with Dubai-based airline Emirates to provide specialized landing gear repair and overhaul services for the airline’s Boeing 777 aircraft fleet. This marks HAECO’s first foray into landing gear support for Emirates, with the initial induction set for some time in 2025. 

Liebherr-Aerospace signed an agreement for a new service center at Dubai South during MRO Middle East focusing on air management systems components repair. The company will grow its aftermarket service capacities with a new 26,000 ft.² facility that will be European Union Aviation Safety Agency Part 145 certified, scheduled to commence operation in early 2026. The new facility will cater to regional demand for aftermarket repair services for Liebherr products on commercial aircraft, business jets and helicopters.

STS Aviation Services, in collaboration with interiors and avionics specialist Diehl Aviation, has expanded its footprint in the United Arab Emirates with the opening of a new facility in the Dubai Airport Freezone. This 12,000 ft.² facility will function as a shared workspace, with Diehl Aviation overseeing the final assembly and certification of cabin components under a European Union Aviation Safety Agency Part 21G approval, while STS Aviation Services will handle final assembly and kitting under Diehl's supervision. Equipped with dedicated production lines, rework stations, spare parts warehousing and office space, the facility is designed to streamline operations and improve service delivery. Initially, the focus will be on assembling components for the Airbus A380 aircraft family, such as lavatories and sidewall panels, with the flexibility to expand to other aircraft models as needed.

Another STS Aviation Services partnership announced at MRO Middle East was with United Arab Emirates-headquartered base and line maintenance provider ATS Technic. The partnership is targeting the mutual enhancement of capabilities, and STS will extend its UK Civil Aviation Authority approvals to all ATS Technic stations in the Middle East, expanding service offerings to a broader range of airlines. Additionally, it plans to open a module-level engine shop in the region which it says will reduce the need for costly and time-consuming engine shipping. Both parties will also unite in the region in the area of aircraft components and parts trading.

Tarmac Aerosave has extended terms with Safran Aircraft Engines for the installation of the reverse bleed system (RBS) on CFM International Leap 1A engines. The retrofit work, which Tarmac Aerosave started in September 2024, has been extended for the second time. Designed to mitigate carbon build-up on fuel nozzles, the system reduces the need for on-wing fuel nozzle replacements and leads to the lowering of maintenance requirements. 

Turkish Technic has signed agreements with IndiGo, India's largest airline, and Air India Express, a subsidiary of the Air India Group, to provide MRO services for their aircraft fleets. Announced during MRO Middle East 2025, the MRO provider's agreement with IndiGo will see it carry out redelivery checks on more than 10 Airbus A320neo aircraft from its bases at Istanbul Ataturk and Sabiha Gokcen Airport. Additionally, Turkish Technic confirmed that advanced discussions are taking place for a separate agreement covering landing gear overhaul operations for the same IndiGo-operated A320neo fleet. In a separate agreement with Air India Express, Turkish Technic will provide comprehensive component support and solutions for the airline's Boeing 737-8 and 737-10 fleets. Covering 190 aircraft, this partnership will give Air India Express access to component pooling, repair, overhaul, modification and logistics services.

Lithuanian MRO FL Technics will provide maintenance for United Arab Emirates-based carrier Fly Vaayu's Airbus A320P2F, a converted passenger to freighter aircraft. FL Technics, which opened a new line station in Dubai earlier this year, will provide full-time onboard engineering services for Fly Vaayu, including line maintenance. Additionally, engineers will assist in aircraft de-registration and re-registration procedures on behalf of the airline.

ST Engineering announced two engine MRO contracts from two unnamed Middle Eastern airlines at MRO Middle East 2025. The first agreement is related to CFM International CFM56-7B work while the other is for Leap 1A engines. Both contracts were signed under multi-year terms and maintenance work will be carried out at ST Engineering's main base in Singapore.

Panasonic Avionics has entered a 10-year agreement with Saudi Arabian startup airline Riyadh Air to support the in-flight entertainment maintenance needs for its fleet of 32 Boeing 787 aircraft. As part of the deal, Panasonic Technical Services, the manufacturer's MRO business, will establish a dedicated line maintenance station in Riyadh while recruiting locally in order to support the agreement. Riyadh Air is scheduled to begin service by the end of 2025.