In a landmark event underscoring India’s growing clout in aerospace manufacturing, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez inaugurated the Tata Aircraft Complex in Vadodara, Gujarat. This new facility, a collaboration between Tata Advanced Systems and Airbus, will manufacture C-295 transport aircraft, furthering India’s “Make in India, Make for the World” vision. The event not only highlights India’s strategic partnership with Spain but also bolsters India’s ambition to become a global defense manufacturing hub.
Prime Minister Modi celebrated the inauguration as a testament to India’s rapid project execution, noting the foundation stone was laid just a year ago, in October 2022. Modi highlighted India’s transformation from an importer to a global supplier in defense manufacturing, a shift bolstered by strategic policies encouraging private sector participation and streamlining public defense units. “This new facility is a reflection of the ambitious work culture of New India,” he said, forecasting its impact on job creation and skill development. The Tata-Airbus partnership is expected to create thousands of new jobs while supporting indigenous manufacturing of 18,000 aircraft parts, a boon for India’s MSMEs.
Prime Minister Sanchez hailed this collaboration as a symbol of the deepening India-Spain ties. “India’s vision in defense aligns with Spain’s commitment to shared progress,” Sanchez said. This relationship is set to expand further with 2026 earmarked as the “India-Spain Year of Culture, Tourism, and AI,” celebrating the diverse cultural connections between the two nations.
India’s defense manufacturing landscape has seen dramatic growth over the past decade. Initiatives such as the iDEX program have fostered nearly 1,000 defense startups, while defense exports have surged, placing India on the global map as a key supplier. Modi cited India’s success with its indigenous defense projects, including its Bombardier train and metro coach manufacturing in Vadodara, which now exports globally. The C-295 facility will not only fulfill Indian Air Force requirements but is also envisioned as a hub for potential exports, positioning India as a future leader in the aerospace sector.
Modi also looked beyond defense, predicting that Vadodara’s new facility could lead to the manufacturing of Made-in-India civil aircraft, aligning with India’s massive aviation expansion. The Prime Minister emphasized that India’s burgeoning aviation sector, which includes orders for over 1,200 new aircraft from Indian airlines, could soon meet global demand with Indian-made civil aircraft.
Governor of Gujarat Acharya Devvrat, Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar joined the Prime Ministers in celebrating the event. This Tata-Airbus collaboration will not only serve India’s defense but also strengthen the broader economic and cultural bonds between India and Spain, creating a lasting impact on both nations’ futures in the global aerospace industry.
