Aircraft Maintenance, Repair and Overhauling Services Global Market Opportunities and Strategies to 2033

This report describes and explains the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market and covers 2018-2023, termed the historic period, and 2023-2028, 2033F termed the forecast period. The report evaluates the market across each region and for the major economies within each region.

The global aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market reached a value of nearly $78.1 billion in 2023, having grown at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3% since 2018. The market is expected to grow from $78.1 billion in 2023 to $108.4 billion in 2028 at a rate of 6.8%. The market is then expected to grow at a CAGR of 5.2% from 2028 and reach $139.7 billion in 2033.

Growth in the historic period resulted from strong economic growth in emerging markets, increasing demand for aircraft and increasing emissions from aviation. Factors that negatively affected growth in the historic period were increasing aviation fuel prices and geopolitical tensions.

Going forward, rising disposable incomes per capita, increase in passenger air traffic, increasing air accidents and increasing investments in the defense and military sectors will drive the market. Factors that could hinder the growth of the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market in the future include shortage of skilled labor and increasing raw material costs.

The aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market is segmented by type into commercial aircraft MRO services, commercial helicopters MRO services, commercial gliders and drones MRO services, aircraft turbines MRO services, aircraft engines MRO services and rocket engines MRO services. The commercial aircraft MRO services market was the largest segment of the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market segmented by type, accounting for 59.5% or $46.5 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the commercial gliders and drones MRO services segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market segmented by type, at a CAGR of 25% during 2023-2028.

The aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market is segmented by aircraft division into engine, cabin interior, airframe, avionics and others. The engine market was the largest segment of the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market segmented by aircraft division, accounting for 28.3% or $29.9 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the avionics segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market segmented by aircraft division, at a CAGR of 7.8% during 2023-2028.

The aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market is segmented by service type into engine overhaul, airframe maintenance, component, line and modification. The engine overhaul market was the largest segment of the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market segmented by service type, accounting for 43.9% or $34.3 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the component segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market segmented by service type, at a CAGR of 7.6% during 2023-2028.

The aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market is segmented by size into narrow-body, wide-body, regional and others. The narrow-body market was the largest segment of the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market segmented by size, accounting for 37% or $31.2 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the wide-body segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market segmented by size, at a CAGR of 7.9% during 2023-2028.

Asia-Pacific was the largest region in the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market, accounting for 33.4% or $26.1 billion of the total in 2023. It was followed by North America, Western Europe and then the other regions. Going forward, the fastest-growing regions in the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market will be the Middle East and South America, where growth will be at CAGRs of 12.8% and 10.5% respectively. These will be followed by Africa and Western Europe, where the markets are expected to grow at CAGRs of 7.6% and 6.7% respectively.

The global aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market is fairly fragmented, with a large number of players operating in the market. The top ten competitors in the market made up to 20.3% of the total market in 2022. The fairly fragmented market can be attributed to the presence of large number of players in different geographies. Delta Air Lines Inc. was the largest competitor with a 3.3% share of the market, followed by Raytheon Technologies Corporation with 3.3%, Air France KLM with 2.7%, Safran Aerosystems with 2.3%, Lockheed Martin Corporation with 2.1%, Airbus Group SE with 2%, General Electric with 1.3%, MTU Aero Engines AG with 1.2%, Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC with 1.2% and The Boeing Company with 1%.

The top opportunities in the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market segmented by type will arise in the commercial aircraft MRO services segment, which will gain $12.3 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market by aircraft division will arise in the engine segment, which will gain $12.8 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market by size will arise in the narrow-body segment, which will gain $11.7 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market by service type will arise in the engine overhaul segment, which will gain $14.3 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market size will gain the most in Turkey at $4.8 billion.

Market-trend-based strategies for the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market include launch of collaborative MRO solutions to improve efficiencies, predictive maintenance systems to improve maintenance service for jets, launch of new platforms to transform airline operations, expansion of new maintenance, repair and overhaul services business units, development of innovative solutions, focus on offering heavy maintenance and passenger-to-freighter (PTF) conversions for widebody aircraft and strategic partnerships and collaborations among market players.

Player-adopted strategies in the aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services market include focus on enhancing business operations through new investments and partnerships and collaborations.

To take advantage of the opportunities, the analyst recommends aircraft maintenance, repair and overhauling services companies to focus on collaborative MRO solutions for efficiency, focus on predictive maintenance systems for competitive advantage, focus on innovative platforms for airline operations, focus on diversified business units for market expansion, focus on innovative service solutions for enhanced efficiency, focus on aircraft engines and commercial gliders/drones MRO services, focus on engine overhaul and component services, focus on wide-body and narrow-body segments, expand in emerging markets, continue to focus on developed markets, provide competitively priced offerings, continue to use B2B promotions, participate in trade shows and events, focus on defense and military sector companies and focus on expanding services amid rising passenger air traffic.