AAR Announces Moves to Strengthen MRO Segment

WOOD DALE, Ill., Jan. 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- AAR CORP. announced today that Donald J. Wetekam has been named Group Vice President of the Company's Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) segment. Wetekam previously served as President and General Manager of AAR's Aircraft maintenance facility in Oklahoma City. As Group Vice President, Wetekam will oversee all of AAR's MRO activities and be responsible for growing the Company's domestic and international MRO business and expanding its offerings to government customers.

"Don is a proven leader with a wealth of experience leading MRO operations," said Timothy J. Romenesko, President and Chief Operating Officer of AAR. "His commitment to operational excellence and process improvement will be invaluable as we grow this part of the business and strengthen AAR's position as a world-class MRO provider."

Prior to joining AAR, Wetekam served as Deputy Chief of Staff for Installations and Logistics in the U.S. Air Force and was a staunch advocate for the adoption of commercial process improvement techniques, such as Lean and Six Sigma. He also directed operations at Warner Robins Air Logistics Center and played key leadership roles at the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center at Tinker Air Force Base.

In another move to strengthen and increase its MRO business, AAR has appointed Mickey Cohen Vice President, Commercial MRO Group, reporting to Wetekam. In this expanded role, Cohen will oversee all commercial MRO activities at AAR's aircraft maintenance facilities in Indianapolis, Oklahoma City, and Hot Springs, Arkansas. Cohen will also continue to serve as Corporate Vice President, Operations and Engineering.

"Mickey understands our airline customers' operations and knows what it takes to run an efficient and successful commercial MRO business," Romenesko continued. "Since joining the Company in 2003, Mickey has been instrumental in building customer relationships and instilling a culture of quality that has contributed to the success of our MRO segment."

AAR is among the top 10 MROs in the world according to a 2007 study of man-hours performed conducted by Aviation Week's Overhaul and Maintenance Magazine.

AAR is a leading provider of products and value-added services to the worldwide aviation/aerospace industry. With facilities and sales locations around the world, AAR uses its close-to-the-customer business model to serve airline and defense customers through four operating segments: Aviation Supply Chain; Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul; Structures and Systems; and Aircraft Sales and Leasing. More information can be found at http://www.aarcorp.com/.

This press release contains certain statements relating to future results, which are forward-looking statements as that term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are based on beliefs of Company management, as well as assumptions and estimates based on information currently available to the Company, and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from historical results or those anticipated, including those factors discussed under Item 1A, entitled "Risk Factors", included in the Company's May 31, 2007 Form 10-K. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize adversely, or should underlying assumptions or estimates prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described. These events and uncertainties are difficult or impossible to predict accurately and many are beyond the Company's control. The Company assumes no obligation to publicly release the result of any revisions that may be made to any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of such statements or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events. For additional information, see the comments included in AAR's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.