Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, Sep 25: At the Hindon Air Base on Monday, the first C-295 medium tactical transport aircraft was officially inducted into the Indian Air Force (IAF). Defence Minister Rajnath Singh was present for the induction.
Days after being delivered to the IAF in the southern Spanish city of Seville, the C-295 aircraft touched down in Vadodara, Gujarat, on September 20.
Two years after India and Airbus Defence and Space agreed to a contract for Rs 21,935 crores to buy 56 C-295 transport planes to replace its ageing Avro-748 fleet, the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari, received the first of the aircraft on September 13.
“The IAF’s first C-295 MW aircraft landed in Vadodara today. The aircraft would be handed over to the IAF in a formal ceremony on September 25, 2023, at Air Force Station Hindon by Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh,” the IAF tweeted on September 20.
According to the agreement, Airbus will deliver the first 16 aircraft in “fly-away” condition from its final assembly line in Seville by 2025, while Tata Advanced Systems (TASL) will manufacture and assemble the other 40 aircraft in India as part of a joint industrial venture between the two companies.
The Main Constituent Assembly (MCA) plant in Hyderabad has already started producing some of the aircraft’s parts. The Final Assembly Line (FAL) in Vadodara, which is anticipated to be operational by November 2024, will receive these parts.
The foundation stone for the Vadodara manufacturing facility that will produce 295 planes was officially laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in October of last year. It would be the first military aircraft made in India by a private consortium.
The IAF is buying C-295 aircraft to replace its fleet of outdated Avro-748 aircraft, which started service more than 60 years ago.
The C-295 is recognized as an excellent aircraft for carrying out tactical transport missions, capable of accommodating up to 71 troops or 50 paratroopers. It is also well-suited for conducting logistical operations in areas that are beyond the reach of current heavier aircraft.
The aircraft can be utilised for casualty or medical evacuation as well as airdropping loads and paratroopers. It is capable of carrying out special missions, disaster relief work and marine patrol responsibilities.
