<p>American aerospace giant Pratt & Whitney made the engine that powered the F-35, one of the world’s most advanced fighter jets that made its India debut this week. <span class="bold">Ashmita Sethi</span>, the head of its Indian arm, sat down with <span class="bold"><em>DH</em>’s Lavpreet Kaur</span> at Aero India 2023 to discuss everything from the state of indigenisation to its future plans.</p>.<p>Edited excerpts.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Where does India stand when it comes to indigenous manufacturing of engines and other aerospace equipment?</strong></p>.<p>The Indian aerospace industry has come a long way and has evolved to become competitive in the global market. However, there is still a long way to go for 100 per cent indigenisation of complex machinery in India. Significant growth is happening and we shall see a day soon when engines will be made here.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>How are you collaborating with local manufacturers and emerging tech companies?</strong></p>.<p>We have sourced over $0.5 billion in engineering services from India over the past two decades. Our supply chain’s orders for components crossed $55 million in the past 10 years from leading Indian aerospace suppliers and we expect to expand our overall industrial sourcing to nearly $40 million annually till 2028. We intend to harness more talent inherent to India, growing our business while investing in the local industry.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>What is the state of the global supply chain after the pandemic?</strong></p>.<p>Like anyone else in the world, we have faced supply chain challenges due to the pandemic. Now the ramp has come back. In a big way we are seeing a revival in passenger traffic. There are things like structural castings, other parts, labour, etc which are in short supply right across the world. </p>.<p class="Question"><strong>How are you tackling those challenges?</strong></p>.<p>We’re using mitigation strategies. We are talking to our suppliers to accelerate the delivery of parts and hiring more people to add capacity globally. We are also adding to our MRO networks but we still expect these challenges will continue in 2023.</p>
<p>American aerospace giant Pratt & Whitney made the engine that powered the F-35, one of the world’s most advanced fighter jets that made its India debut this week. <span class="bold">Ashmita Sethi</span>, the head of its Indian arm, sat down with <span class="bold"><em>DH</em>’s Lavpreet Kaur</span> at Aero India 2023 to discuss everything from the state of indigenisation to its future plans.</p>.<p>Edited excerpts.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>Where does India stand when it comes to indigenous manufacturing of engines and other aerospace equipment?</strong></p>.<p>The Indian aerospace industry has come a long way and has evolved to become competitive in the global market. However, there is still a long way to go for 100 per cent indigenisation of complex machinery in India. Significant growth is happening and we shall see a day soon when engines will be made here.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>How are you collaborating with local manufacturers and emerging tech companies?</strong></p>.<p>We have sourced over $0.5 billion in engineering services from India over the past two decades. Our supply chain’s orders for components crossed $55 million in the past 10 years from leading Indian aerospace suppliers and we expect to expand our overall industrial sourcing to nearly $40 million annually till 2028. We intend to harness more talent inherent to India, growing our business while investing in the local industry.</p>.<p class="Question"><strong>What is the state of the global supply chain after the pandemic?</strong></p>.<p>Like anyone else in the world, we have faced supply chain challenges due to the pandemic. Now the ramp has come back. In a big way we are seeing a revival in passenger traffic. There are things like structural castings, other parts, labour, etc which are in short supply right across the world. </p>.<p class="Question"><strong>How are you tackling those challenges?</strong></p>.<p>We’re using mitigation strategies. We are talking to our suppliers to accelerate the delivery of parts and hiring more people to add capacity globally. We are also adding to our MRO networks but we still expect these challenges will continue in 2023.</p>
