Inside the overnight takeover: How Bird Group, AI SATS and AIASL stepped in after Celebi’s exit

Delhi-based aviation services provider Bird Group, Tata Group-owned Air India SATS, and state-run AI Airport Services Ltd (AIASL) have taken over the ground handling responsibilities, which were previously held by Celebi Airport Services, at several airports across the country.

The handover of ground services at airports such as Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Cochin, Chennai, Goa (Manohar Airport), Ahmedabad, and Kannur was completed within hours after the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) Thursday revoked Celebi’s security clearance in the interest of “national security”.

These makeshift redistribution arrangements are only temporary. Ground handling services at airports in India are regulated. As per the Directorate General of Civil Aviation’s (DGCA) regulations, every airport with over 10 million annual passenger capacity needs at least three ground handlers.

With Celebi’s exit, Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport is left with only two ground handling service providers—Bird Group and Air India SATS. Both are stepping up to manage ground handling services at Delhi’s IGI Airport following the BCAS order.

“The temporary handling arrangement is being executed without profit motives. This is purely a support initiative in national interest to prevent disruption and maintain operational integrity,” a senior executive of an aviation services company told Fortune India. It is now the airport operator’s task to select the third ground handler, the person said.

Ground handling companies that are taking over the business of Celebi are likely to retain the Turkish company’s employees. “More than 10,000 employees previously working under Çelebi have been absorbed across the interim handlers. Approximately 35-40% of the workforce has joined Bird Group, while the rest have been placed with AI SATS and AI ASL,” the executive said. There will be no job losses as all Celebi employees will be inducted into one or the other ground handling companies, the person cited above said.

Celebi has invested more than $220 million in creating long-term infrastructure and equipment in India over the past 15 years.

“We have a lot of equipment with us already. Whatever we don’t have, we are sharing with other ground handlers. Whatever they don’t have, we are providing. What the airlines were paying to Celebi, they will pay us,” the executive said, adding that it is up to Celebi on what it does with their equipment.

Until the third ground handler is selected by the Delhi Airport, existing handlers will operate in a “non-profit, support-only capacity” to ensure service continuity and regulatory compliance, the executive said.

India’s aviation ecosystem has responded with commendable speed and cooperation to mitigate potential disruptions caused by Çelebi’s exit. All stakeholders—including airport operators, ground handlers, and regulators—have reiterated their commitment to a smooth, transparent, and regulation-compliant transition, keeping public convenience and employment continuity at the forefront.

Çelebi’s India presence grew exponentially with three different entities. Çelebi’s first step into India started with a joint venture with a mandate to provide services at Mumbai International Airport. Within a year, Çelebi was registered in India to provide ground handling as Çelebi Airport Services India and cargo services as Çelebi Delhi Cargo Terminal Management India at the Delhi international airport. Over the last decade, these two stations have grown to become a total of nine stations in India, consisting of Mumbai, Delhi, Cochin, Kannur, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Goa, Ahmedabad, and Chennai.

Following the government’s decision to revoke Celebi's security clearance, Adani Airport Holdings terminated the ground handling concession agreements with Celebi at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) and Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport (SVPIA). All existing employees of Celebi at CSMIA and SVPIA will be transferred to the new ground handling agencies on their existing terms and conditions of employment, it said.

Bengaluru International Airport Ltd (BIAL), too, severed its ties with Çelebi, stating that it is working closely with existing ground handling service providers to ensure continuity and operational stability. Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad and Goa’s Manohar International Airport are also working closely with alternative service providers and regulatory authorities to facilitate a smooth transition.