Can you tell me about the Rs.20,000 crore defence deal between Tata group and Airbus of Europe?
Answer
Answer
The Rs.20,000 crore deal was formally signed between the Ministry of Defence and Airbus Defence and Space, Spain to procure 56 C-295 medium transport aircraft to replace the current Avro-748 planes of the Indian Air Force. The unique feature of this order is that Tata Advanced Systems will manufacture these aircraft in India in association with Airbus and will be customized to the specific needs of the Indian Air Force.
This deal marks a very positive and important step in opening up of aviation and avionics projects in India. This will be one of the biggest deals in the Make in India program announced by the government in the defence field. Under terms of the deal, a total of
16 aircraft will be delivered in a flyaway condition by Airbus Defence and Space within 48 months of signing the contract.
The other 40 planes will be manufactured in India by a consortium of Airbus Defence and Tata Advanced Systems over a 10-year period. The C-295 MW aircraft is a transport plane having 5-10 tonne capacity. In addition, a large number of parts, sub-assemblies and major component assemblies of aerostructure will also be manufactured in India. Even a full-fledged servicing MRO facility will be set up in India by that time.