Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez officially declared that Tata Advanced System Limited (TASL)-Airbus facility will manufacture C-295 military aircraft in India. This would be India’s first private sector final assembly line for military aircraft.
PM Modi said the aircraft manufactured at the Vadodara facility will be exported in the future. He added that the ecosystem created by this manufacturing facility will hereafter help India manufacture civil aircraft.
Modi's statement
The Prime Minister went on to say, "Recently, we lost the country's great son Ratan Tata ji. If he had been among us today, he would have been happy, but wherever his soul is, he would be happy. This C-295 aircraft factory reflects the new work culture of New India.”
He added, “When I was the Gujarat CM, it was decided to set up a factory in Vadodara to build train coaches. The factory was also prepared for production within a record time. Today, we are exporting the metro coaches manufactured in that factory to other countries. I am confident that in the future, the aircraft made in this factory will also be exported to other countries.”
Sanchez disclosed that Airbus will deliver the first 16 aircraft in 'fly-away' condition from its final assembly line in Seville, Spain, within four years.
After that 40 aircraft will be manufactured and assembled by the Tata Advanced Systems (TASL) in India as part of the agreement between the two companies.
According to the press release, leading defense public sector units, such as Bharat Electronics and Bharat Dynamics, and private micro, small, and medium enterprises will contribute to this program.
PM Modi laid the foundation stone for the final assembly line in Vadodara in October 2022.
PM Modi and Sanchez participated in a roadshow in Vadodara before heading to inaugurate the Tata Advanced Systems Ltd's facility.
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Official statement from Tata Sons
Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran shared the facility's goals. "The final aircraft assembly complex for the first aircraft to be delivered is being set up here. I must commit to our Prime Minister that exactly two years from now we will deliver the first indigenously manufactured aircraft and we will request and we'll work with your office to block the date so that you can come and inaugurate the facility and receive the first product. “
He added, “The first 200 engineers from Tata Group are already in Spain going through the training that is required, and we have worked with 40 SME companies and we will be adding more companies to build the entire localisation that is required for the product.”