Manufacturing 40 C-295 military aircraft at the TATA facility in Vadodara, Gujarat, would be a boost to India’s Make In India program. It would create thousands of jobs and help the Indian Air Force avoid remaining dependent on OEMs.
According to the statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office on Saturday, this facility would be India’s first private-sector FAL for military aircraft.
The entire development of a complete ecosystem will be involved, from the manufacture to assembly, test, and qualification to the delivery and maintenance of the whole lifecycle of the aircraft.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said the C-295 project is “a huge achievement for Indian private industry as it will be the first of its kind project in which an entire military aircraft will be manufactured in India by a private company.”
The C-295 aircraft is an Airbus new-generation medium tactical airlifter in the light and medium segment, which will replace the Avro Hawker Sidley HS748 aircraft of the IAF. The Avro has been part of the IAF fleet since the 1960s.
Some of the purposes of the C-295 aircraft include cargo, personnel transport, parachute operations, electronic signals intelligence, medical evacuation, and maritime patrol.
The C-295 has been described as the “superior aircraft. ” It is primarily used for tactical transport, carrying up to 71 troops or 50 paratroopers, and for logistic operations in inaccessible locations for heavier aircraft.
C-295 also features a good Short Takeoff and Landing (STOL) capacity and robust landing gear capabilities, making it suitable even for the most austere locations with the worst possible takeoff and landing conditions.
The aircraft is designed for short takeoffs and landings, has a rear ramp door that opens for the rapid deployment of troops and cargo, and has an Indigenous Electronic Warfare suite supplied by Indian defense public sector undertakings Bharat Electronics Ltd and Bharat Dynamics Ltd.
