Airbus and India’s Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL) have inaugurated a final assembly line (FAL) complex in India to support the production of C295 transport aircraft contracted by the Indian Air Force (IAF), the two companies jointly announced on 28 October.
According to Airbus and TASL, the new FAL facility is located in Vadodara, Gujarat, will integrate the manufacturing of detail parts and related tooling, subassemblies, major component assemblies, tools, jigs, and testers.
Production of components of the C295 aircraft have already commenced in the Main Component Assembly (MCA) facility in Hyderabad.
The inauguration comes three years after the IAF committed to acquiring up to 56 Airbus C295 aircraft to replace the service’s legacy Avro HS 748 fleet. The contract calls for 40 aircraft to be manufactured and assembled in partnership with TASL at the Vadodara FAL, while 16 will be delivered to the IAF in ‘fly-away’ condition from Airbus’ final assembly line in Seville, Spain. A total of six aircraft have already been delivered, the statement said.
“The C295 India programme demonstrates Airbus’ commitment to supporting India’s vision of ‘AatmaNirbhar Bharat’ in defence manufacturing,” said Michael Schoellhorn, CEO of Airbus Defence and Space.
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,” added Schoellhorn.
The companies added that the first domestically produced C295s will roll out of the Vadodara FAL in September 2026, and the facility will increase its rate of production to deliver the remaining aircraft to the IAF by August 2031.
India will perform more than 85% structural and final assembly of the 40 aircraft and will also locally manufacture 13,000 detail parts.
by Jr Ng
