Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and Gati Shakti Vishwavidyalaya (GSV) signed a memorandum of understanding to share and enhance knowledge and skills in aviation, aviation engineering and aviation management. The agreement was signed by DGCA head Faiz Ahmed Kidwai and GSV vice chancellor Manoj Choudhury in the presence of senior government officials. The partnership aims to create industry?aligned training pathways and research linkages.

The primary objective is to promote quality manpower for the aviation and maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) sector through an undergraduate degree in Aviation Maintenance Engineering (AME) and enhanced industry?academia partnerships. The three?year B.Sc. (AME) curriculum will be implemented from the academic year 2026-27, commencing in August 2026, and will be jointly designed by DGCA and GSV.

GSV will act as a research and knowledge partner in sustainable aviation fuels, aircraft maintenance and parts manufacturing and will support capacity building for DGCA officers. The university has collaboration with 62 industry partners and has been asked to consider a centre of excellence for precision manufacturing engineering to strengthen domestic manufacturing capability.

Officials said that building an aviation manufacturing ecosystem is central to sectoral growth and noted that MRO capacity has expanded from around 160 to more than 240 in the past five years. They cited around 1,700 aircraft on order, representing nearly two times the current fleet, and suggested fleet size could reach 3,000 aircraft by 2036. Projections indicate a requirement for between 10,000 and 12,000 pilots over the next 10 years.

The MoU is expected to create a structured bridge between regulation, academia and industry, with DGCA maintaining licensing standards under CAR-66 and CAR-147 while GSV functions as a national academic anchor for curriculum innovation, apprenticeship models and research integration. By embedding hands?on MRO training, simulation labs and OEM partnerships into AME education, the collaboration aims to develop a future?ready workforce to support expanding fleets and position India as a competitive global MRO and aircraft manufacturing destination.