Inside Adani’s ₹400 Cr Takeoff: The Deal That Could Redefine Indian Aviation

India's second wealthiest individual, Gautam Adani, has entered the aviation services market, making a strategic foray into the business by buying an 85.8% stake in Air Works India (Engineering) Pvt Ltd for ₹400 crore. The deal, struck by Adani Defence Systems and Technologies Ltd, is an entry into the Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) business—commercial aviation as well as defence aviation.

 

Air Works, founded in 1951 and headquartered in Gurugram, is India's largest private MRO organization. It has operations in 35 cities, has over 1,300 employees, and houses a range of aircraft—from narrow-body jets to helicopters. The organization also has over 20 regulatory approvals from international air regulators, making it a market leader in global aviation maintenance.

 

Key Points:

 

The transaction is all cash, with no equity dilution.

Air Works has also previously collaborated with Boeing to support its P-8I aircraft for Indian Navy.

The acquisition is part of Adani Group's strategic foray into defence and aerospace, which supplements its existing business in airports and logistics.

Adani aims to develop an end-to-end MRO ecosystem, ranging from line maintenance, heavy overhauls, avionics, to asset management.

The agreement aligns with India's Aatmanirbhar Bharat vision by augmenting domestic aviation infrastructure.

 

Jeet Adani, Director, Adani Airports, stated that the acquisition will make India a global aviation hub because the nation will be introducing over 1,500 new aircraft over the next two years.

 

Source: DNA India, ET Now, GoodReturns