IAF base in Prayagraj to be hub for transport aircraft C295 spares

Air Commodore Angshuk Pal, who is commanding the air force station, on Monday inaugurated the exclusive warehousing facility for C-295 assemblies and parts

NEW DELHI: An Indian Air Force (IAF) base in Prayagraj will be the spares hub for the its latest C295 transport aircraft, which is at the heart of a key Make in India programme, a defence ministry statement said on Monday. The 24 Equipment Depot, Air Force Station, Manauri in Prayagraj has been designated as the central stock holding depot for C295 spares.

The first C295 for India has successfully completed its maiden flight (ANI File)

Air Commodore Angshuk Pal, who is commanding the air force station, on Monday inaugurated the exclusive warehousing facility for C-295 assemblies and parts.

In September 2021, the defence ministry signed a ₹21,935-crore project with Airbus Defence and Space to equip the IAF with 56 C295 aircraft to boost self-reliance in the defence manufacturing sector. Tata Advanced Systems Limited and Airbus are jointly executing the programme.

The aircraft was ordered as a replacement for the IAF’s fleet of ageing Avro-748 planes that entered service in the early 1960s.

The first 16 C295 aircraft will be delivered to the IAF by Airbus in flyaway condition from Spain, and the remaining 40 will be assembled in India. The first plane is set to be delivered to the IAF in September followed by the second one in May 2024.

All 16 flyaway aircraft will be delivered between September 2023 and August 2025, while the first Made in India C295 will roll out of the Vadodara facility in September 2026 and the remaining 39 by August 2031,

In October 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of the manufacturing facility being set up by the Tata-Airbus combine at Vadodara. The C295 will be the first military aircraft to be manufactured in India by a private consortium.