Enhancing Firepower Through Private Sector

By placing private arms manufacturers at the heart of its mission to transform India into an industrial power, the Modi government is trying to usher in a new era for the country’s defence industry.

- Rakesh Krishnan Simha

In 2011, long before ‘Make in India’ became a popular buzzword in the defence industry, Mahindra Aerospace acquired Australian light aircraft manufacturer Gippsland Aeronautics for $20 million, becoming the first – and still only – Indian company that is able to make an entire aircraft.

It took just two years for Mahindra to leverage the technologies absorbed from the Gippsland deal and create something big. In 2013, the company inaugurated a 25,000 square metre Bengaluru facility, equipped with a suite of sheet-metal, surface-treatment and assembly capabilities to meet the requirements of the global aerospace industry. Today, Mahindra assembles eight- and 10-seater aircraft in Australia, with most of the parts manufactured in India.

Mahindra’s big-ticket investment is aimed at becoming a global defence major. From components, to small aircraft, these are the stages the company is passing through to eventually producing a 200 seater aircraft. The company’s CEO Arvind Mehra told Flight Global magazine, “As a pure component manufacturer, you can never be a tier-one supplier, only tier three or four. But if you reach assemblies or aerostructures quickly, then you become an integral part of aircraft manufacturers' supply chain.”

Time for a rethink