For the first time, it will be an exclusively private factory from which aircraft that can fly will leave the production line.
A first-ever India Defence Capability Enhanced jobs to India was created, placing India on the list of exporting nations. Indeed, a game changer is in order here with the Tata Airbus C295 program.
On Monday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Spanish counterpart, President Pedro Sanchez, inaugurated India’s first private military transport aircraft production plant in Vadodara, Gujarat.
The final assembly line is the first one in Indian private aviation, which means fly-ready planes will roll out of the factory.
It is indeed a momentous occasion for India’s aerospace industry, its manufacturing ecosystem, and its defense capabilities since the Airbus C295 aircraft manufacturing facility will be located at the TASL campus.
It will replace the aging Soviet Antonov An-32 and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd Avro 748, which have been in service within the IAF.
“The Airbus C295 is a technological capability leap compared to the Avro 748,” defense expert Kunal Biswas wrote on X.
What makes the C295 tick is its ability to take off and land on very short and unpaved runways, making it ideal for navigating challenging terrain – and this is mainly the case along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China and along India’s strategic maritime boundary.
With a top cruise speed of 482 mph and the ability to carry up to nine tons of cargo, 71 soldiers, or 48 paratroopers, the C295 greatly enhances the IAF’s operational readiness and flexibility.
The twin-turboprop, battle-tested C295 can even do cargo-dropping, electronic signals intelligence, medical evacuations, maritime patrol, and refueling for the Indian defense forces.
