Prime minister Narendra Modi and his Spanish counterpart, Pedro Sanchez, jointly inaugurated the TATA Aircraft Complex for manufacturing C-295 aircraft at TATA Advanced Systems Limited (TASL) Campus in Vadodara, Gujarat on Monday. Both the PMs also took a walkthrough of the exhibition showcased on the occasion.

Addressing the gathering, Modi remarked that it was Pedro Sanchez’s first visit to India and the partnership between the two countries was finding a new direction today. Noting the inauguration of the TATA Aircraft Complex for manufacturing C-295 aircraft, he 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. He also paid his tributes to the late Ratan Tata.

Modi underlined that the factory of C295 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, he said that the facility is now ready for production of C295 aircrafts.

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 the confidence that the aircrafts made in today’s inaugurated facility would also be exported.

Quoting the famous Spanish poet, Antonio Machado, the PM 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, he 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.

“We expanded private sector participation in defense manufacturing, made public sector units more efficient, restructured ordnance factories into seven major companies, and empowered DRDO and HAL”, said Modi. Touching upon the iDEX (Innovation for Defence Excellence) scheme, he said that it has driven the growth of around 1,000 defense startups in the past five to six years. He informed that India’s defense exports have increased 30 times over the past decade, with the country now exporting equipment to over 100 countries.

The PM laid emphasis on skilling and job creation and said that projects like the Airbus-Tata factory will create thousands of jobs. He said that the factory will support indigenous manufacturing of 18,000 aircraft parts, providing immense opportunities for MSMEs across India. Noting that India is one of the biggest suppliers of parts for the world's major aircraft companies even today, Modi said that the new aircraft factory will give a big boost to new skills and new industries in India.

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 PM 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.

Background
Under the C-295 program, a total of 56 aircrafts are to be delivered out of which 16 are being delivered directly by Airbus from Spain and remaining 40 are to be made in India.

Tata Advanced Systems Ltd is responsible for making these 40 aircrafts in India. This facility becomes the first private sector Final Assembly Line (FAL) for military aircraft in India. It will involve the full development of a complete ecosystem from the manufacture to assembly, test and qualification, to delivery and maintenance of the complete lifecycle of the aircraft.

Apart from Tatas, leading defence public sector units such as Bharat Electronics Ltd. and Bharat Dynamics Ltd, as well as private Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises will contribute to this program. Earlier in October 2022, Prime Minister had laid the foundation stone for the Vadodara Final Assembly Line (FAL).