Article Posted on : - Mar 29, 2016

C295W military transport aircraft. Photo: Airbus Group

QUEPEM, GOA (BNS): The Airbus will highlight the Group's participation in the "Make in India" programme.

The project includes the Indian Air Force's Avro replacement programme where Airbus Group has bid to produce the C295W in India together with Tata Advanced Systems as well as its partnership with Mahindra Defence to produce military helicopters locally.

"We are at the forefront of the "Make in India" initiative," said Pierre de Bausset, President & Managing Director, Airbus Group India.

"We will use Defexpo to present our plans to produce defence platforms in India and basically build an industrial eco-system supporting it in collaboration with local partners. This would involve creation of thousands of local jobs, skilling people, technology absorption, etc."

Scale models of the C295W as well as the military helicopters H125M Fennec, AS565MBe Panther and the EC725 (now marketed as the H225M) will be on display.

The selection process for the C295W medium transport aircraft is ongoing.

According to the Company the AS565 MBe Panther will meet the requirements of the Indian Navy's Naval Utility Helicopter (NUH) programme for around 100 units.

The H125M Fennec is foreseen for the Indian Army's and Air Force's Reconnaissance and Surveillance Helicopter (RSH) need of around 400 units.

The EC725 (now marketed as H225M) is under selection process for the Indian Coast Guard's 14 shore-based helicopter tender and is also perfectly suited for the Indian Navy's 120+ Naval Multi-Role Helicopter (NMRH) programme.