New Delhi, Madrid unveil India's first private military aircraft plant

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Spanish counterpart Pedro Sanchez inaugurated India's first private military aircraft plant, boosting New Delhi's ambitions of growing local manufacturing in its defence and aerospace industries.

Sanchez was welcomed to the country with a roadshow in Gujarat state's Vadodara city where hundreds of people cheered and waved banners.

The two leaders then launched the Tata Aircraft Complex on Monday, the manufacturing hub which will produce the Airbus C-295 transport military aircraft in collaboration with Airbus Spain and to be deployed by the Indian air force.

Sanchez said the project was a triumph of Modi's vision “to turn India into an industrial powerhouse and a magnet for investment and business-to-business collaboration."

“This partnership between Airbus and Tata will contribute to the progress of the Indian aerospace industry and will open new doors for the arrival of other European companies,” he added.

“This new aircraft factory will boost new skills and new industries in India,” Modi said, adding that the country was now supplying parts to the world's leading aircraft companies.

Historic milestone in defence manufacturing

The chairman of Tata conglomerate, Natarajan Chandrasekaran, hailed it as a historic day for the country's defence sector and credited the late Ratan Tata, the industrialist and former chairman who died earlier this month, for conceiving the idea more than a decade ago.

Under a $2.5 billion deal signed in 2021, Airbus will deliver the first 16 of the aircraft from its final assembly line in Seville, Spain — six of them have been delivered to the Indian air force so far. Tata Advanced Systems Ltd will produce 40 of the aircraft in the Vadodara plant, which is expected to roll out the first C-295 aircraft made in India in 2026.

The aircraft can transport up to 71 troops or 50 paratroopers and will be able to access remote locations. It can also be used for medical evacuations and aid in disaster response and maritime patrol duties.

Since coming to power in 2014, Modi has vowed to turn India into a global manufacturing hub, including in infrastructure, pharmaceuticals and defence. As part of an effort to modernize and reform military equipment, the government has sought to grow the private defence manufacturing sector, a space previously occupied solely by the government-run organizations, and has eased foreign direct investment regulations to try and encourage companies to establish themselves in India.

Growing collaboration

The visit marks the first by a Spanish leader to India in 18 years. Modi and Sanchez have previously met on the sidelines of global summits in 2018 and 2021. During the two-day visit, Sanchez will hold talks with Modi to review ties between the countries and also speak with Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.

On Tuesday, Sanchez will travel to Mumbai, India's financial capital and home to Bollywood, where he is expected to interact with trade and industry leaders, and also visit film studios in an effort to grow collaboration between the Indian and Spanish entertainment industry.

Their bilateral trade stood at nearly $10 billion as of 2023. According to the Indian foreign ministry, more than 200 Spanish companies actively operate in India and around 80 Indian companies in Spain.

The two leaders are expected to sign agreements that will further boost ties and cooperation in various areas such as trade, information technology, renewable energy and defense, according to an Indian government statement.