India to acquire 56 Airbus C295; 40 to be manufactured by Tata Advanced Systems

India will acquire 56 C295 aircraft from Airbus for the Indian Air Force. The C295 aircraft will replace the legacy AVRO fleet. According to the agreement, Airbus will deliver the first 16 aircraft in ‘fly-away’ condition from Seville in Spain and the latter 40 aircraft will be manufactured and assembled by the Tata Advanced Systems (TASL), the two companies announced in a joint statement on Friday. This is the first time a private company in India will be wholly manufacturing an aircraft.

The first 16 aircraft will be delivered by Airbus in four years from the implementation of the contract. All the IAF C295s will be handed over in transport configuration and will be equipped with an indigenous Electronic Warfare Suite.

Upon the announcement of the deal, Ratan Tata took to social media to congratulate both the companies. He said that the deal is a great step forward in the opening up of aviation and avionics projects in India. The complete manufacturing of the C295 aircraft in India will create a domestic supply chain capability to international standards. Tata said that building the multi-role aircraft in India is a push to the ‘Make-in-India’ initiative.

This deal is the first ‘Make in India’ aerospace programme in the private sector that will utilise the complete industrial ecosystem from manufacturing, assembling, testing and qualifying, to delivering and maintaining the life cycle of the aircraft.

Michael Schoellhorn, CEO of Airbus Defence and Space said, “This contract will support the further development of India’s aerospace ecosystem, bringing investment and 15,000 skilled direct jobs and 10,000 indirect positions over the coming 10 years.”

“For the first time, an Indian private company will be wholly manufacturing an aircraft in India. This endeavour demonstrates Tata Advanced Systems’ capabilities as a defence manufacturer to build globally competitive complex platforms in India,” said Sukaran Singh, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer at Tata Advanced Systems.

THE AIRBUS C295

The C295 is used for tactical transport. It has the ability to operate from short or unprepared airstrips, and transport up to 71 troops or 50 paratroopers. The C295 can also be used for logistic operations in locations not easily accessible to heavier aircraft.

It can be used to airdrop paratroops and loads, casualty or medical evacuation, special missions as well as disaster response and maritime patrol duties.

The Indian Air Force is the 35th C295 operator worldwide. The programme has 278 aircraft worldwide with 200 in operation, and has clocked half a million flight-hours.

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