Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: In a significant step to make India self-reliant in manufacturing aircraft for civil aviation, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and Russia’s UAC on Monday signed an MoU to make SJ-100 passenger jets in India.
Marking the first full-scale civil aircraft manufacturing project in the country, HAL and Russia’s Public Joint Stock Company United Aircraft Corporation (PJSC-UAC) signed the MoU for the production of civil commuter aircraft SJ-100, the media reported on Tuesday.
The agreement was signed in Moscow by Prabhat Ranjan, Senior Manager, Strategic Sourcing & Product Development, HAL, and Oleg Bogomolov from PJSC-UAC. On the occasion, D. K. Sunil, Chairman and Managing Director of HAL, and Vadim Badekha, Director-General of PJSC-UAC, were also present.
The SJ-100 is a twin-engine, narrow-body aircraft designed for short-haul flights. More than 200 SJ-100s are currently in operation with more than 16 commercial airlines globally.
Under this collaboration, HAL will gain the rights to manufacture SJ-100 aircraft for Indian customers. The aircraft is expected to play a key role in improving regional air connectivity, particularly under the government’s flagship UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik) scheme, which aims to enhance air travel accessibility to Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, and make air travel affordable and accessible to smaller cities across India.
This is the first time a complete passenger aircraft will be manufactured in India. The last such project by the company was the production of the AVRO HS-748, which began in 1961 and concluded in 1988.
HAL said the partnership with UAC reflects “mutual trust” and is a major step towards the aim of Atmanirbhar Bharat (Self-Reliant India) in the aviation sector.
The collaboration came when India’s aviation industry is expanding rapidly. HAL estimates that over the next decade, India will need more than 200 regional jets for domestic connectivity and another 350 aircraft for routes connecting nearby international tourist destinations in the Indian Ocean region.
“The manufacturing of the SJ-100 aircraft marks the beginning of a new chapter in the history of the Indian aviation industry,” HAL said in a statement.
The deal marks India’s re-entry into passenger jet manufacturing after decades and is expected to bolster indigenous capabilities, generate high-skill jobs, and strengthen India’s aviation ecosystem.