The Defence Ministry has inked a nearly Rs 20,000 crore contract with Airbus Defence and Space of Spain to procure 56 C-295 medium transport aircraft which will replace Avro-748 planes of the Indian Air Force.
The long-pending procurement was cleared by the Cabinet Committee on Security two weeks back.
“Contract signed between #MinistryOfDefence and @AirbusDefence &Space, Spain for procurement of 56 C-295 transport aircraft for the #IAF,” Defence Ministry Spokesperson A Bharat Bhushan Babu tweeted.
Contract signed between #MinistryOfDefence and @AirbusDefence &Space, Spain for procurement of 56 C-295 transport aircraft for the #IAF@rajnathsingh @adgpi @PIB_India @PIBHindi @indiannavy @IAF_MCC @drajaykumar_ias @AjaybhattBJP4UK @IndiainSpain pic.twitter.com/YqgvAYKWHA
— A. Bharat Bhushan Babu (@SpokespersonMoD) September 24, 2021
Under the deal, 16 aircraft will be delivered in a flyaway condition by the Airbus Defence and Space within 48 months of signing the contract.
The remaining 40 planes will be manufactured in India by a consortium of the Airbus Defence and Space and Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL) within 10 years of signing the contract, officials said.
The C-295 MW aircraft is a transport plane of 5-10 tonne capacity. This is the first project of its kind in which a military aircraft will be manufactured in India by a private company.