A new Hyderabad aircraft cabin centre will bring design, certification, retrofit, refurbishment and manufacturing capabilities together under a partnership between GMR Aero Technic and French aerospace company UUDS Aero, strengthening the city’s role in India’s expanding aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul ecosystem.
The two companies have signed a memorandum of understanding to develop advanced aircraft cabin interior capabilities in India. The integrated cabin excellence centre will be established at GMR Aero Technic’s facility in Hyderabad, according to the companies.
The centre is expected to support a wide range of services, including cabin interior design, modification, certification, repair, retrofit, refurbishment, manufacturing and installation. These capabilities are intended to serve airlines and aircraft operators in India as well as international markets.
GMR Aero Technic said the partnership will combine its existing MRO infrastructure and operational capabilities with UUDS Aero’s expertise in cabin interior design, engineering, certification and production. The arrangement will allow the two companies to offer cabin-related services alongside broader aircraft maintenance operations at the Hyderabad facility.
UUDS Aero holds EASA Part 21J Design Organisation Approval and Part 21G Production Organisation Approval. These approvals relate to the company’s recognised capabilities in aircraft design and production organisation activities, which will form part of the technical expertise brought into the collaboration.
“Our collaboration with UUDS Aero is an important milestone in strengthening our aircraft cabin interior capabilities,” Ashok Gopinath, president and accountable manager at GMR Aero Technic, said. He added that the companies aimed to combine UUDS Aero’s design and certification expertise with GMR Aero Technic’s MRO capabilities to deliver integrated cabin solutions to customers in India and international markets.
Ashane Gunaratne, group chief technology officer and managing director – Middle East at UUDS Aero, said the partnership reflected the French company’s long-term commitment to the Indian aviation market. He said the collaboration would bring together technical capabilities in cabin design, engineering, certification, manufacturing and MRO.
The agreement places aircraft cabin interiors within the wider set of specialised services being developed around Hyderabad’s aviation facilities. Rather than limiting the site’s role to maintenance and repair, the planned centre is designed to cover multiple stages of cabin work, from engineering and regulatory certification to production, installation and refurbishment.
The companies said the partnership would support the development of end-to-end cabin solutions and advance their technical capabilities. No investment amount, construction schedule, employment projection or operational launch date for the centre was disclosed in the announcement.
