The Indian aviation industry is looking beyond fleeting supply disruptions

Indian aviation has faced the challenge of increased passenger demand but fewer aircraft available due to global supply issues with Pratt & Whitney and CFM engines, effectively grounding a large number of Airbus A320 IndiGo and Go First flights. To meet growing international demand, IndiGo will lease six Boeing 777s from Turkish Airlines for six months.

With supply chain disruptions expected to improve next year, forecasts continue to point to an increase in the number of passengers on board to 140 million next year, despite rising fuel prices, the Ukraine-Russia conflict and a lower exchange rate of Rs. According to international consultancy Center for Aviation, Indian airlines will operate more than 700 aircraft by the end of 2023, about 50 more than in 2022.

Meanwhile, Airbus commercial director Christian Scherer said Airbus will deliver one aircraft per week to customers in India for the next 10 years. “India is the largest market in the world for our flagship commercial product, the A320,” he said.

Scherer was speaking at an event marking the construction of a manufacturing plant where Airbus and the Tata Group have agreed to collaborate on the assembly of the C295 transport aircraft for the Indian Air Force. “This will kick-start the manufacturing ecosystem in India,” he announced. The contract provides for the assembly, testing and qualification, delivery and maintenance of the full life cycle of the aircraft.

The deal marks India’s first private aviation project, which will lead to the production of civilian passenger aircraft once established, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at the inauguration. He added that India’s regional connectivity scheme, which offers incentives to operators to fly to remote and small cities, has given a big boost to the aviation sector. “India will need more than 2,000 aircraft in the next 15 years,” he said. “Today is an important step in that direction.”

Regional cargo aircraft for logistics have the potential to serve remote areas. The C295 is FAA and EASA certified for civilian use and can operate on dirt runways, many of which the government is rehabilitating.

Of the 56 C295s ordered, the partners will assemble 40 at Vadodara in the western Indian state of Gujarat. “As part of the programme, Airbus is partnering with the Tata Group in India for a full range of aircraft manufacturing and services,” said Tata Sons Chairman N. Chandrasekaran. “This catapults India into manufacturing quality systems that will help produce high-precision and high-quality products.”

Rohit Tomar, Managing Partner, Caladrius Aero Consulting, explained that the skills learned in the structural design and testing of the transporter will be of great value in incubating commercial aircraft manufacturing in India. “The key to ‘Make in India’ civil aircraft will lie with the DGCA and how quickly it builds up its internal capabilities and processes,” he said. “The demand for materials engineers is very important.”