The first C295 which will soon replace the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) legacy AVRO fleet successfully completed its maiden flight in Spain.
This means that the delivery of the tactical aircraft which took off from Seville, Spain and landed successfully after completing three hours of flight will be ready to be delivered in the second half of 2023.
“With this the IAF will become the largest operator of this aircraft in the world,” says Jean-Brice Dumont, Head of Military Air Systems at Airbus Defence and Space.
It has been reported earlier that India acquired 56 C295 military aircraft in September 2021 and these aircraft will replace the legacy AVRO fleet of IAF. The first 16 aircraft are going to be assembled in Seville, Spain and delivery will start later this year to the customer in ‘fly-away’ condition.
Thereafter, the balance 40 aircraft will be manufactured and assembled as part of industrial partnership between Tata Advanced Systems (TASL) and Airbus in India as part of an industrial partnership between the two companies.
This new-generation tactical airlifter in the light and medium segment is expected to boost India’s military capabilities amid threats from its immediate neighbours – China and Pakistan.
Last October, C295 Final Assembly Line was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Gujarat. In the private sector, this is the first ever large-scale Make-in-India defence programme and will unlock the industrial value chain of maintenance of the complete lifecycle of the aircraft, design, testing, manufacturing, and assembly. Also, this will significantly contribute towards developing indigenous capabilities of the Indian companies under `Atmanirbhar Bharat’ in the defence sector.
According to an official statement issued by the company on Monday (May 8, 2023) there are 280 orders from 39 operators for the C295 programme.
Comment of Jean-Brice Dumont, Head of Military Air Systems at Airbus Defence and Space
“This first flight represents a significant accomplishment for the first Make in India aerospace programme. And this programme exemplifies our commitment to improve the Indian Air Force (IAF) operational capabilities,” he added.