Airbus C295 for Indian Air Force to be manufactured in Vadodara

India is set to have its first aircraft manufacturing unit in the private sector with Prime Minister Narendra Modi scheduled to lay the foundation stone of Tata’s military transport aircraft production plant at Vadodara on Sunday.

The manufacturing unit that disrupts the eight-decade-long monopoly of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited would initially roll out Airbus's C295 transport planes for the IAF as a replacement of the ageing Avro fleet. But the same unit, defence secretary Ajay Kumar said, could later be used to produce other transport aircraft for the Indian Air Force.

The foundation stone laying by the Prime Minister will happen days before the announcement of Assembly polls in Gujarat, where the BJP has been in power since 1995. The Rs 21,935 crore Tata-Airbus consortium project is expected to generate more than 6,000 direct and indirect jobs in the western state, according to the officials of the Defence Ministry.

The ministry in September 2021 signed the contract with Airbus under which the European aviation major will supply 16 aircraft in fly-away condition between September 2023 and August 2025. The remaining 40 planes would be manufactured at the Vadodara plant over the next six years.

“This is the first project of its kind in which a military aircraft will be manufactured in India by a private company. The aircraft can be used for civilian purposes as well. The project offers a unique opportunity for the Indian private sector to enter into technology-intensive and highly competitive aviation industry. It will augment domestic aviation manufacturing,” said Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar.

The top official said that Airbus would bring in its “self-certification” programme for the IAF’s C295 fleet – a practice that the company adopted in several other countries. A discussion is also going on with India’s civil and military aviation regulators for a change in the certification process and a draft of the new policy is getting ready.

IAF Vice Chief Air Marshal Sandeep Singh said the aircraft would be able to operate from Advanced Landing Grounds (ALGs) and even unprepared runways. “The C295 surpasses the performance of the Avro as well as the AN-32. It has larger capacity and is very fuel-efficient as well. But a decision on the replacement of AN-32 would be taken five years later,” he added.

The Avro-replacement programme witnessed several ups and downs since the UPA era with one minister in the Manmohan Singh government opposing a senior minister who mooted the idea of having an aircraft manufacturing plant in the private sector.