MoD, Airbus sign Rs 21K-cr deal for 56 planes

Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, September 24

The Ministry of Defence on Friday signed a contract with European company Airbus for procurement of 56 military transport aircraft C-295MW at a cost of nearly Rs 21,000 crore ($2.8 billion).

Tatas to collaborate for manufacturing

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• 16 aircraft to be delivered by Airbus unit in Spain over next fouryears
• 40 to be made in India by Airbus-Tata consortium in next 10 years

The C-295MW is a transport aircraft of 5-10 tonne capacity with contemporary technology that will replace the ageing Avro aircraft of the Indian Air Force. The aircraft has a rear ramp door for quick reaction and para-dropping of troops and cargo. Sixteen planes will be delivered in a flyaway condition by the Airbus manufacturing unit in Spain within the next 48 months. The remaining 40 will be made in India by Airbus-Tata consortium within the next 10 years.

Moment of pride

This is a moment of pride for Tatas and a milestone for the Indian military manufacturing ecosystem. — Sukaran Singh, MD-CEO, TATA Advanced Aystems Ltd

This is the first project of its kind in which a military aircraft will be manufactured in India by a private company. All 56 aircraft will be installed with indigenous electronic warfare suite. A large number of parts, sub-assemblies and major component assemblies of aero structure are scheduled to be manufactured in India. Jean-Brice Dumont, executive vice-president and head of Airbus military aircraft, said at a press conference here: “The making of the 40 planes by Tatas will be truly ‘make in India’.”

A joint statement by Tata-Airbus said “make in India” is at the heart of the Airbus strategy in India. The C295 programme will see Airbus bring its complete bouquet of world-class aircraft manufacturing and servicing to India in collaboration with industrial partners, including the Tatas and leading defence public sector units such as Bharat Electronics Ltd and Bharat Dynamics Ltd, as well as private micro, small and medium enterprises, the companies said.

The contract will support the development of India’s aerospace ecosystem, bringing investment and 15,000 skilled direct jobs and 10,000 indirect positions over the coming 10 years, said the statement.

Sukaran Singh, managing director and CEO, Tata Advanced Systems Limited, said: “This is a moment of pride for Tatas and a milestone for the Indian military manufacturing ecosystem.”