By NC Bipindra
New Delhi: India’s first ‘Made in India’ Airbus C295 transport aircraft has successfully completed its maiden flight test from the Tata Advanced Systems’ Final Assembly Line in Vadodara, Gujarat, on Wednesday (June 10, 2026). The aircraft is the first of the 40 aircraft being assembled at the facility and is now all set to be delivered to the Indian Air Force (IAF).
“The first ‘Made in India’ Airbus C295 military transport aircraft has conducted its first test flight from the Final Assembly Line in Vadodara, marking a milestone for Indian aviation and defence,” Airbus Defence posted on X. “This maiden test flight is a crucial step in the aircraft’s post-production testing process. As the first of 40 aircraft to be built in India, the test flight advances the programme’s objective of delivering the first ‘Made in India’ C295 aircraft this year to the Indian Air Force,” the post, accompanied by a video, said.
Calling the aircraft assembly a “game changer” in the Government of India’s ‘Make in India’ vision, the European aircraft maker said, “The C295 India programme is the first instance of a military aircraft being manufactured in India by the private sector…We are building the future of Indian aerospace.”
Thanking the IAF, the defence ministry, and the Indian government for their “unwavering trust” in it, the company said, “The programme’s progress reflects the steady and dedicated work of Airbus, Tata Advanced Systems Limited, and several Indian MSMEs, which are manufacturing parts for the aircraft across India.”
The C-295 would be the replacement aircraft for the IAF’s ageing Avro transport aircraft fleet. The aircraft boasts a payload capacity of 9,000 kg, or can be converted into an airborne medical facility with 24 stretchers, or carry 42 fully-equipped paratroopers, comparable to that of the An-32, or 50 passengers.
In a game-changer decision for the defence sector, India signed a contract, worth $3 billion, for 56 Airbus C295MW aircraft with troops and military equipment carrying capability, to replace an ageing fleet of HS748 Avro planes for the air force. The September 2021 deal was the first military aircraft-making project awarded to a private sector company, TASL, keeping out the state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for 75 years since India’s independence.
The Narendra Modi government’s decision has now paved the way for a level playing field for the private sector to join the military aviation manufacturing sector. The decision has also led to more military aviation projects going the private sector way, with the government deciding to rope in the private sector for the prestigious fifth-generation Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) project too recently.
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