The facility reinforces India's position as a trusted partner in global aerospace manufacturing: Shri Narendra Modi

“The factory reflects the work culture of a New India”

India’s defence manufacturing ecosystem is reaching new heights: PM

The facility is the first private sector Final Assembly Line for military aircraft in the country

First Made-in-India C-295 expected to be rolled out by September 2026; Six of 16 aircraft to be brought in fly-away condition inducted into IAF

New Delhi, Oct 28

As a major milestone for India’s Aerospace & Defence industry, Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL) and Airbus inaugurated the Final Assembly Line (FAL) complex for the Airbus C295 aircraft in Vadodara, Gujarat in India. TASL and Airbus are partnering for the pioneering ‘Make in India’ project to deliver 56 C295 aircraft to the Indian Air Force (IAF). The state-of-the-art facility was inaugurated by the Prime Minister of India, Shri. Narendra Modi and the President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sánchez Pérez-Castejón in the presence of N. Chandrasekaran, Chairman of Tata Sons and Michael Schoellhorn, CEO of Airbus Defence and Space.

Addressing the gathering, PM Modi remarked that it is the Prime Minister of Spain Pedro Sanchez’s first visit to India and the partnership between the two countries is finding a new direction today. Noting the inauguration of the TATA Aircraft Complex for manufacturing C-295 aircraft, the Prime Minister said that it would not only strengthen the relations between the two nations, but also give momentum to the mission of ‘Make in India, Make for the World’. Modi conveyed his best wishes to the entire team of Airbus and TATA on the occasion. The Prime Minister also paid his tributes to Late Ratan Tata.

The Prime Minister underlined that the factory of C-295 aircraft is a reflection of the new work culture of New India and said that India’s speed from idea to the execution of any project in the country can be witnessed here. Recalling the foundation stone laying of the factory in October 2022, the Prime Minister said that the facility is now ready for production of C-295 aircraft. Emphasizing the focus on eliminating unaccounted delays in the planning and execution of projects, the Prime Minister recalled the setting up of Bombardier Train Coach manufacturing facility in Vadodara as the Chief Minister of Gujarat and said that factory was ready in record time for production. “Metro Coaches made in this factory are being exported to other nations today”, he added. Modi expressed confidence that the aircraft made in today’s inaugurated facility would also be exported.

Quoting the famous Spanish poet Antonio Machado, the Prime Minister remarked that as we start treading towards the goal, the path towards the goal is created automatically. Noting that India’s defence manufacturing ecosystem was scaling new peaks today, Shri Modi said that if concrete steps were not taken 10 years ago then it would have been impossible to reach this destination today. He added that a decade ago, the priority and identity of defence manufacturing were about import and none could imagine that defence manufacturing could take place on such a large scale in India. The Prime Minister remarked that the Government decided to walk on a new path, set new goals for India, whose results are evident today.

The Prime Minister said that India’s transformation of the defence sector exemplifies how a right plan and partnership can turn possibilities into prosperity. He underlined that strategic decisions have spurred the growth of a vibrant defence industry in India over the last decade.

“We expanded private sector participation in defence manufacturing, made public sector units more efficient, restructured ordnance factories into seven major companies, and empowered DRDO and HAL”, said Shri Modi. He said establishing defence corridors in Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu infused new energy into the sector. Touching upon Innovation for Defence Excellence (iDEX) scheme, the Prime Minister said that it has driven the growth of around 1,000 defence start-ups in the past five to six years. He informed that India’s defence exports have increased 30 times over the past decade, with the country now exporting equipment to over 100 countries.

The Prime Minister underlined that he was looking at today's program beyond the manufacturing of transport aircraft. Highlighting the unprecedented growth and transformation of India's aviation sector in the last decade, Modi remarked that India was providing air connectivity to hundreds of small cities in the country, while simultaneously working to make India a hub of aviation and MRO domain. He added that this ecosystem will also pave the way for Made in India civil aircraft in the future. Noting that various Indian airlines have ordered 1,200 new aircraft, Shri Modi said that this only meant the newly inaugurated factory will play a major role from designing to manufacturing civil aircraft to meet the needs of India and the world in the future.

Noting that Vadodara City was a stronghold of MSMEs, Modi remarked that the city will act as a catalyst in these efforts of India. He added that the city also had a Gatishakti University, which was preparing professionals for different sectors of India. The Prime Minister also noted that there were many companies related to many sectors like the pharma sector, Engineering and Heavy Machinery, Chemicals and Petrochemicals, Power and Energy Equipment in Vadodara. He added that now this entire region was also going to be a major hub of aviation manufacturing in India.

Concluding the address, the Prime Minister expressed confidence that today's event will inspire many new joint collaboration projects between India and Spain. He extended an invitation to the Spanish industry and innovators and encouraged them to come to India and become partners in the country's development journey.

“The C-295 project is a huge accomplishment for the Indian private industry as it is the first project of its kind in which a complete military aircraft will be manufactured in India by a private company. The project will give a big boost to India’s growing aerospace ecosystem,” Rajnath Singh, defence minister wrote on X.

Providing a major boost to the Government of India’s 'AatmaNirbhar Bharat’ (self-reliant India) programme, this is the first instance of the private sector setting up an aircraft FAL in India. The inauguration comes three years after the IAF formalised the acquisition of 56 Airbus C295 aircraft to replace their legacy AVRO fleet. As per the contract, 40 units will be manufactured and assembled in partnership with TASL at this FAL, while 16 will be delivered to the IAF in ‘fly-away’ condition from Airbus’ final assembly line in Seville, Spain. To date, a total of six aircraft have already been delivered.

N. Chandrasekaran, Chairman of Tata Sons, said, "The Tata Group is very proud in setting up this advanced facility which will manufacture the nation’s first private defence aircraft from the ground up. It will significantly enhance both defence and advance manufacturing capabilities. I am thankful to Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, Hon’ble Pedro Sánchez Pérez-Castejón and the distinguished guests for joining us at this momentous occasion in India's indigenous manufacturing journey."

“The inauguration of this final assembly line (FAL) is a significant milestone in India’s journey towards self-reliance in defence manufacturing. The C295 India programme demonstrates Airbus’ commitment to supporting India’s vision of ‘AatmaNirbhar Bharat’ in defence manufacturing. Aligned to this vision, this FAL will propel the advancement of the aerospace industrial ecosystem in the country, unlocking the potential for cutting-edge design, component manufacturing, aircraft assembly and services capabilities across the Indian value chain,” said Michael Schoellhorn, CEO of Airbus Defence and Space.

The FAL will integrate manufacturing of detail parts and related tooling, sub-assemblies, major component assemblies, tools, jigs and testers. The production of components of the C295 aircraft have already started in the Main Component Assembly (MCA) facility in Hyderabad. The parts for the first C295 aircraft to be made in India have been shipped to the Vadodara FAL, where the aircraft will be assembled and then delivered to the IAF.

The first ‘Make in India’ C295 will roll out of the Vadodara FAL in September 2026, which will be a milestone for the Indian aerospace industry; and shall ramp-up to deliver 40 aircraft to the IAF by August 2031, as required by the IAF contract.

India has become the largest customer for the C295, with the acquisition of 56 aircraft. The C295 ‘Make in India’ programme will produce more than 85% structural and final assembly of 40 aircraft along with the manufacturing of 13,000 detail parts in India, for which 21 special processes have been certified and 37 India-based suppliers, both from the private and public sectors, have been onboarded.

For Airbus, India is a strategic resource hub where the company is expanding its industrial footprint with aircraft assembly, component manufacturing, engineering design and development, MRO support, pilot and maintenance training as well as academic collaboration to foster human capital. Airbus invests more than $1 billion every year in a robust and comprehensive supply chain in India for components and services, generating more than 15,000 jobs. Additionally, Airbus India’s own engineering and digital centres in Bengaluru contribute to all the commercial and helicopter programmes of Airbus globally.