• “Sky’s Not the Limit”: Launching India’s first private jet MRO on ground

 By Sangeeta Saxena

 Le Bourget, Paris. 20 June 2025. This is a story of a woman’s passion – fighting a battle with malignancy, surviving it , starting to work on a dream , fulfilling it and trailblazing for women world over.  At the 2025 Paris Air Show, Aviation & Defence Universe (ADU) caught up with Kanika Tekriwal, founder and CEO of JetSetGo, India’s first private jet concierge service. Over the years, JetSetGo has become synonymous with innovation in business aviation, expanding into MRO, skilling, and most recently, advanced air mobility and aerospace manufacturing. In this candid and comprehensive Q&A, Kanika shares her vision for reshaping India’s skies — from launching STOL networks in the Northeast to building industrial parks in Andhra Pradesh.

ADU. Kanika, great to see you in Paris! What’s JetSetGo’s vision in the civil aviation ecosystem of India?

Kanika Tekriwal. Thank you, Sangeeta. It’s wonderful to be here. India has truly become a land of aviation opportunities. There’s a supportive government, maturing policies, and educated regulators. Civil aviation is booming, and we’re seeing significant growth. JetSetGo started as a private jet operator, managing aircraft for high-net-worth individuals. But now, we’ve expanded into maintenance, skilling, advanced air mobility, and aerospace manufacturing.

ADU. You’ve now forayed into the MRO segment. Why this diversification?

Kanika Tekriwal. As an operator, I realised the scarcity of quality Indian MROs for business jets. The aircraft are aging — average 15+ years — and India is registering a private jet every three weeks! But we don’t have the infrastructure or engineers to support them efficiently. That led us to launch our own MROs in Hyderabad, focused on business jets. We aim to service not just our aircraft but also others’, with plans to scale to a larger hangar elsewhere.

ADU. What innovation are you bringing into MRO operations?

Kanika Tekriwal. Our approach is data- and AI-driven. We’re building a predictive maintenance model that forecasts faults using empirical data. That drastically reduces aircraft-on-ground (AOG) time — from 7–12 days to ideally 1–2. We’re planning line maintenance stations across tier-2 cities like Surat and Coimbatore to ensure quick turnaround wherever the aircraft flies.

ADU. What are your views on skilling challenges in the aviation sector?

Kanika Tekriwal. There’s a clear engineering talent gap. While AME graduates are entering the market, experienced professionals are few. We’ve started an internal training programme to absorb AMEs and groom them in-house. We’re also exploring a skilling academy for real-world experience. Most top engineers leave India for better pay abroad, and we need to reverse that brain drain.

ADU. You mentioned moving into advanced air mobility (AAM). What does that entail?

Kanika Tekriwal. It’s the future! We’ve signed LOIs with Horizon Aircraft, Electra.aero, and Vector (Embraer). Electra, for instance, is a short take-off and landing (STOL) aircraft ideal for India’s Northeast. We’re conducting feasibility studies with OEMs to start STOL operations connecting main cities like Imphal to remote interiors. These aircraft need just 500 meters of runway. Imagine reducing a 28-hour road journey to a 45-minute flight!

ADU. Will this tie into vertiports and eVTOLs as well?

Kanika Tekriwal. Absolutely. After STOL, we’ll scale to eVTOLs for urban air mobility. We’re working with vertiport operators to build the necessary infrastructure. The long-term goal is an integrated system of AAM across metros and remote areas.

ADU. You also mentioned manufacturing. What’s happening on that front?

Kanika Tekriwal. We’re setting up an aerospace industrial park in Andhra Pradesh. Our aim is to manufacture basic components to plug the huge supply chain gaps. Turnaround times are too long—engines take 14–18 months to come back from overhaul. Windscreens take 6 months! We want to build local capacity for low-cost, quality manufacturing.

ADU. How do you see aircraft leasing evolving?

Kanika Tekriwal. We were the first to import a plane from GIFT City, and we now operate four from there. I’m a big fan of GIFT City—it’s a solid idea, like what Ireland did. In 10 years, I believe India can outperform Ireland in aircraft leasing.

From pioneering India’s private jet concierge to leading cutting-edge AAM and aerospace manufacturing, Kanika Tekriwal is scripting the next chapter of Indian civil aviation. With a hands-on approach to MRO, skilling, STOL deployment, and low-cost manufacturing, JetSetGo under her leadership is poised to bridge crucial industry gaps and shape the future of flight in India.

As told to Sangeeta Saxena