Ontic Appoints Boeing Veteran Jonathan Grant as Global Chief Engineer

Global aerospace parts manufacturer and aftermarket specialist Ontic has appointed aerospace industry veteran Jonathan Grant as its first Global Chief Engineer. The newly established executive role places Grant at the head of the company's worldwide technical authority structure, centralizing engineering governance as Ontic accelerates the acquisition and licensing of mature aircraft systems from leading airframe and engine manufacturers.

Grant brings more than two decades of aerospace engineering, flight sciences, and airworthiness certification experience to the position. His appointment reflects Ontic's strategic effort to unify technical leadership across its international operations, ensuring that the manufacturing and maintenance of flight-critical legacy components meet rigorous global regulatory standards throughout an aircraft's operational lifespan.

Scope of the New Global Role

As Ontic's primary technical authority, Grant holds comprehensive oversight of engineering governance, standards, methodologies, and technical processes across the company's full product portfolio. His operational remit spans reliability engineering, obsolescence management, aviation safety, and regulatory compliance, directly supporting commercial airlines, cargo carriers, and military operators in maintaining fleet airworthiness.

In addition to day-to-day airworthiness oversight, Grant will steer technical support across the entire product lifecycle. This responsibility includes managing the complex technical transition of product lines from original equipment manufacturers to Ontic, optimizing ongoing production, executing design modifications, and delivering long-term sustainment. By consolidating these duties under a single global authority, Ontic aims to streamline technical decision-making across its manufacturing and overhaul sites in the United Kingdom, the United States, and Singapore.

Extensive Systems and Certification Background

Grant joins Ontic following a tenure as Head of Engineering at Seattle-based aerospace testing and certification firm AeroTEC. At AeroTEC, he led an engineering organization of more than 100 specialists spanning flight sciences, avionics, electrical hardware, instrumentation, ground testing, and Federal Aviation Administration certification. Prior to that role, he served as Director of Programme Management and Systems Engineering at Radia in Boulder, Colorado, where he recruited more than 25 tier-one aerospace suppliers to develop a specialized mission aircraft.

The foundational portion of Grant's career was spent at Boeing, which he joined in September 2006 as a systems engineer. Over a 15-year career at the aerospace manufacturer, he led avionics development and certification across multiple commercial aircraft programs. Notably, Grant directed systems integration for the Boeing 737 MAX development program, guiding complex avionics architecture through testing and certification ahead of the aircraft's entry into passenger service in May 2017.

Supporting Mature Fleet Airworthiness

As major aircraft manufacturers channel engineering capacity toward next-generation airframes, mature commercial and military platforms increasingly face acute supply chain disruptions and electronic parts obsolescence. Ontic plays a critical role in the aviation aftermarket by acquiring licensed manufacturing rights, tooling, and intellectual property from OEMs, ensuring that out-of-production systems remain available and airworthy.

Ontic currently supports more than 1,200 product lines across legacy aircraft platforms, providing original equipment parts, repair capabilities, and engineering support. Sustaining these mature technologies requires sophisticated engineering to re-engineer obsolete components, validate alternative materials, and secure supplemental type certificates without altering original operating limits or safety margins.

Strategic Impact on Global MRO Operations

Grant's appointment signals an evolving standard for independent aftermarket manufacturers, moving away from fragmented site-level engineering management toward unified global governance. With airlines extending the service lives of existing narrowbody and widebody fleets to offset delays in new aircraft deliveries, the demand for licensed component manufacturing and dedicated overhaul support continues to surge.

Under Grant's technical leadership, Ontic plans to expand its engineering capabilities to support upcoming licensing agreements with major OEMs including Boeing, Airbus, Rolls-Royce, and GE Aerospace. By embedding senior systems engineering and certification expertise at the core of its business, the aftermarket specialist aims to bolster fleet reliability, shorten turnaround times for critical components, and ensure seamless regulatory compliance across civil and defence aviation sectors.