9 Sept 2021
The Cabinet Committee on defence (CCS) has approved the long-pending deal of 56 C-295 aircraft worth over $2.8 billion (Rs.21,000 crore).
16 aircraft will be acquired in fly-away condition from an Airbus facility in Spain and the remaining 40 will be manufactured in India Tata Consortium over a 10-year period.
According to a spokesperson for the Ministry of Defence, the C295 MW project “offers a unique opportunity for the Indian private sector to enter the technologically intensive and highly competitive aviation industry, thereby giving a boost to the aerospace ecosystem in India”. The C295 deal is expected to provide the opportunity to several MSMEs located across the country to get involved in the manufacturing of parts for the aircraft.
The C295 MW programme will augment domestic aviation manufacturing resulting in reduced import dependence and an expected increase in exports. A large number of detail parts, sub-assemblies and major component assemblies of aerostructures are scheduled to be manufactured in India. The programme is expected to generate 600 highly skilled jobs directly, over 3,000 indirect jobs and an additional 3,000 medium skill employment opportunities with more than 42.5 lakh man-hours of work within the aerospace and defence sector. Before completion of deliveries, a D-level MRO (maintenance, repair and operations) facility for the C295MW aircraft is scheduled to be set up in India. It is expected that this facility will act as a regional MRO hub for various variants of the C295 aircraft.