Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Spanish counterpart, Pedro Sanchez, will inaugurate the Tata-Airbus facility in Vadodara, Gujarat, on Monday. This facility is set to manufacture C-295 tactical military airlift aircraft as part of a significant partnership. Under the contract signed in 2021 worth Rs 21,935 crore, a total of 56 C-295 aircraft will be produced.
Out of 56, 16 twin-turboprop planes will be delivered directly by Airbus from Spain, while the remaining 40 will be produced domestically in India.
The C-295 aircraft is planned to replace the ageing Avro-748 aircraft fleet used by the Indian Air Force (IAF) in order to enhance its tactical airlift capabilities.
“The Indian and Spanish PMs will jointly inaugurate the TATA Aircraft Complex for manufacturing C-295 aircraft at the TATA Advanced Systems Ltd campus,” an official said.
The first of the 40 aircraft to be manufactured at the new facility is scheduled to roll out in September 2026, with the final one expected by August 2031.
The C-295 aircraft, capable of carrying up to nine tonnes of payload or 71 soldiers, is designed for “short take-off and landing” from semi-prepared surfaces in mountainous regions. This will enhance the IAF’s tactical airlift capability along the China border and in areas such as the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
This is the first time a military aircraft has been manufactured by the private sector, ending the defence industry’s virtual monopoly held by PSU Hindustan Aeronautics.
The initial proposal for 15 more C-295 aircraft was accepted by the Rajnath Singh-led Defence Acquisitions Council in February; nine of them have been allocated for the Navy and six for the Coast Guard.
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