Tata-Airbus venture gives a big boost to indigenous defence production

Airbus invests more than $1 billion annually in a robust and comprehensive supply chain in India for components and services, generating more than 15,000 jobs

In a path-breaking milestone for India’s aerospace and defence (A&D) industry, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Spanish President Pedro Sánchez Pérez-Castejón inaugurated on Monday the Final Assembly Line (FAL) complex, which will build Airbus C-295 tactical transport aircraft for the Indian Air Force (IAF) in Vadodara, Gujarat. This is the first time India’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) has entrusted a private firm to carry out the entire final assembly of a military aircraft. The defence vertical of the Tata group, Tata Advanced Systems Ltd (TASL), is partnering Airbus Defence and Space in this pioneering “Make in India” project. It is