Modi, Sanchez inaugurate India’s 1st private facility for making military aircraft

Vadodara, Oct 28 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Spanish counterpart Pedro Sanchez on Monday inaugurated the Tata Advanced System Limited-Airbus facility to manufacture C-295 military aircraft in India.

The facility in Gujarat’s Vadodara city is the first private sector final assembly line for military aircraft in India.

Modi said it will not only strengthen India-Spain relationship, but also “boost our mission of ‘Make in India, Make for the World’.

The aircraft manufactured at this facility will also be exported in future, he said.

Modi also expressed hope that the ecosystem created by this facility will help India manufacture civil aircraft in future.

“The factory for producing C-295 aircraft reflects the new work culture of new India. This facility showcased the speed at which India is working, right from ideation till execution of any project. The construction of this factory started two years back and today, it is ready for production,” he said.

“I have always stressed on avoiding unnecessary delays in planning or execution…I am confident that aircraft manufactured here will be exported to other countries in future,” Modi said.

The defence manufacturing ecosystem is touching new heights, he said, adding India could achieve the milestone because of some concrete steps taken by his government 10 years ago.

“At that time, no one could have imagined that India could achieve such success in defence manufacturing because the country’s priority and identity were only imports in those days. But we decided to walk on a new path and set new targets for us. And the results are right before us today,” said the PM.

Stressing that along with right plan, “right partnership” is equally important for the success of any project, he said India’s defence manufacturing is a perfect example of the combination.

A “vibrant defence ecosystem” flourished in India due to many important steps, like involvement of the private sector, making the public sector efficient, developing two new defence corridors in UP and Tamil Nadu and strengthening DRDO, he said.

“During the last 5 to 6 years, India saw the creation of nearly 1,000 defence startups. In the last 10 years, India’s defence export grew by 30 times. We are now exporting defence equipment to over 100 countries. Thousands of new jobs will be created due to this factory,” he said.

Nearly 18,000 different parts of this aircraft will be manufactured across the country by micro and small industries, Modi added.

“Today, I am looking beyond just manufacturing transport aircraft. You all must have seen the unprecedented growth and transformation of the country’s aviation sector in the last decade. We are already working to make India a hub of aviation and MRO domain. I am sure this ecosystem will pave way for ‘Made in India’ civil aircraft,” he said.

Various airline firms have placed an order for the purchase of 1,200 new aircraft from around the world over. Now, it is possible that aircraft firms may not be able to take any other country’s order, Modi said.

“Thus, in the future, right from design to manufacturing, this factory will play a crucial role in catering to the demands of India and the world,” he said.

Vadodara, which is already a strong centre of MSMEs, is on way to be a hub of aviation manufacturing, Modi said.

He also invited Spanish entrepreneurs to set up their units in Vadodara.

The partnership between India and Spain is “vibrant and ever evolving” and people of these two countries are connected through “food, films and football”, Modi added.

Sanchez said the first aircraft will be ready to roll out from this final assembly line in 2026.

“This project is also a triumph of PM Modi’s vision of turning India into an industrial powerhouse and a magnet for investment and business collaborations…This project will strengthen our industrial ties while underlying our country’s commitment as a reliable and strategic partner,” he said.

Sanchez said this plant summarises the bilateral relations between Spain and India.

“This relationship has grown over the last few years and today we are taking a step forward. I believe foreign direct investment must be productive and transformative. It is a commitment to the future of the receiving country. It should contribute to the extraordinary future that awaits a country like India,” he said.

On the occasion, Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran promised the PM that the first indigenously manufactured aircraft will be rolled out in two years.

He said this project was originally conceived in 2012 by the then Tata Sons chairman Ratan Tata, who died earlier this month.

“It is a historic moment not only for the Tata Group, but also for India. This will be a ‘Made in India’ aircraft, wherein manufacturing of parts and full assembly of the aircraft and integration is being done for the first time by the private sector in India,” he said.

In September 2021, India sealed a nearly Rs 21,000 crore deal with the Airbus Defence and Space to procure 56 C-295 transport aircraft to replace the ageing Avro-748 planes of the Indian Air Force.

Under the agreement, Airbus will deliver the first 16 aircraft in ‘fly-away’ condition from its final assembly line in Seville, Spain, within four years.

The subsequent 40 aircraft will be manufactured and assembled by the Tata Advanced Systems in India as part of an industrial partnership between the two companies.