Airbus Delivers First C295 To Indian Air Force
Airbus handed over in fly-away condition the first of 56, C295 aircraft to the Indian Air Force (IAF) on Wednesday to begin replacing its ageing Avros-748 fleet.
The C295, in transport configuration and with an indigenous electronic warfare suite, will leave Airbus’ production site in Spain, for India, in the next few days which will be piloted by a joint IAF-Airbus crew, according to a statement.
“It was only two years ago that we signed this contract with India, the largest order in the history of the C295,” said Jean-Brice Dumont, Airbus’ Head of Military Air Systems, in a delivery ceremony held in Seville in the presence of IAF Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari.
Today, we are enhancing the capabilities of the IAF and modernising its transport fleet by delivering the first aircraft on schedule and this is the beginning of an exciting and long-term journey with the IAF, Dumont added.
The first 16 C295s of the 56 aircraft on order will be assembled at the San Pablo Sur site in Seville, Spain with the second aircraft due to be delivered in May 2024 and the next 14 rolled out at a rate of one per month until August 2025.
First C295 ‘Make in India’ in 2026
To boost self-reliance in the defence-manufacturing sector in India, the remaining 40 C295s of the IAF order will be manufactured and assembled – in partnership with Tata Advanced Systems (TASL) – at a Final Assembly Line (FAL) in Vadodara, Gujarat.
The production of components of these aircraft has already started in the Main Constituent Assembly (MCA) facility in Hyderabad. These parts will be shipped to the Vadovara FAL, which is expected to be operational by November 2024.
The first ‘Make in India’ C295 will roll out of the Vadodara FAL in September 2026 in what will be a milestone for the Indian aerospace industry; the final aircraft is expected to be delivered to the IAF by August 2031.
C295 aircraft can carry up to 71 troops or 50 paratroopers, airdrop cargo, be used for medical evacuation and take off and land in short and unpaved runways.
