A Southampton start-up building augmented-reality glasses and AI tools to help aircraft maintenance engineers do inspections and paperwork faster and more safely.
Augment Aero builds software that shows information to aircraft engineers through smart safety glasses. It is designed to bring up manuals, give real-time checks and guidance, support remote help from experts, and help with inspections. The AI part is meant to take over routine admin, which an April 2026 article said can take engineers up to two days. The company says the system can warn an engineer in real time if something looks wrong, and future versions may notice tiredness.
Its mission, as reported, is to reduce aircraft maintenance costs and delays, ease the shortage of engineers and cut errors in safety-critical jobs by giving engineers the right information at the right time. Founder Elaine Harding has described the aim as "giving [engineers] instant access to critical information". We did not find a longer formal mission statement.
The company was founded in 2023, after Elaine Harding saw augmented reality used on a construction site and wondered whether it could help aircraft engineers. It is reported to be based in Southampton, with early prototyping linked to the University of Southampton. It won Innovative Tech of the Year at the South Coast Tech and Innovation Awards in October 2024. A development partnership with one of Europe's largest airlines, which was not named, has been signed. Four product partners were lined up for early trials, and the founder has presented to Ryanair executives. The company says it is aiming to get the system into use at a large airline.
Elaine Harding worked in aerospace recruitment and ran her own aerospace consultancy before starting the company, with about ten years in aviation. The team includes a former hangar manager with TUI and British Airways experience, an AI specialist and engineers. Dame Wendy Hall supports the company from an academic perspective. The roadmap includes game-style features to appeal to younger engineers. No headcount or values page was found.
We did not find any graduate scheme, internship, apprenticeship or vacancy. Because the team is small, early-career people could look at the company's website and its social channels for openings and speak to it about work experience, especially if they have an engineering, computing or aviation background. The company's focus on younger engineers suggests it is thinking about the next generation of workers, though that is not an entry route.
Website: www.augmentaero.com
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