NEW DELHI, Aug 13: The Ministry of Defence has released two Requests for Information (RFI) seeking tenders for manufacturing military transport aircrafts running into tens of thousands of crores. Official sources said the government was looking to acquire 60 multi-role transport aircraft and 150 trainer aircraft for the Indian Air Force.
The larger of the two procurements is for 60 multi-role transport aircraft. Defence sources estimate the project value at close to Rs 1 lakh crore. The RFI makes domestic manufacturing a priority, so the aircraft are to be built in India rather than bought ready-made, in line with the government’s Atmanirbhar Bharat approach to defence.
Tata Group, Mahindra Group and state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) are the names expected to lead the race for the contract. Each has spent the last several years building up its aerospace credentials. Tata’s footprint has grown considerably through the C-295 project, the assembly line for transport aircraft it runs jointly with Airbus in Gujarat.
The aircraft will replace or supplement India’s ageing fleet of tactical airlifters. That would give the armed forces a faster way to move troops, equipment and supplies across terrain ranging from Himalayan outposts to island territories in the Indian Ocean. Defence planners have been pushing for a bigger, more flexible transport fleet for years now, particularly given what it takes to keep forward posts supplied along India’s northern borders.
Officials said the procurement is likely to give a significant boost to India’s broader defence and aerospace ecosystem from tier-one manufacturers down to a network of small and medium component suppliers. If the deal goes ahead as envisaged, it would be one of the single largest indigenous aircraft manufacturing programmes undertaken by the Indian government and is likely to sharpen competition among the country’s top defence conglomerates as each moves to lock in production tie-ups, technology partners and manufacturing capacity ahead of a formal tender.
Along with the transport aircraft process, the Defence Ministry has also floated a separate RFI for 150 trainer aircraft for the Indian Air Force (IAF) – a procurement being read within the industry as another big win in the making for Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL).
State-owned HAL already makes the IAF’s basic trainer aircraft, the HTT-40, giving the manufacturer an edge with its existing production lines, supply chain and track record with the type. The new RFI signals the Air Force’s plans to massively expand its trainer fleet, a segment considered critical to building the pipeline of pilots for India’s expanding combat and transport fleets.
The trainer deal, expected to be for 150 aircraft, is worth an estimated Rs 15,000 crore. Sources tracking the procurement process said a contract may be signed in the next 12-16 months, a relatively quick turnaround by the standards of India’s defence acquisition process which has historically seen delays lasting into years.
(Manas Dasgupta)