"GE AEROSPACE WILL CONTINUE TO BUILD STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS WITH INDIA"

From building Asia's first hydropower plant in India to supplying F404 engines for Tejas Aircraft, GE's journey of proven, matured technology solutions provider for India's requirements of the future is commendable. In an interview Amol Nagar, Managing Director, GE's Multi-modal Factory, GE Aerospace India talks about how the company, along with its Indian partners establishing aero-engine manufacturing infrastructure needs to achieve its self-reliance goals. Edited excerpts:

- Rahul Kamat

Let's start with GE's journey in India. Can you give us a brief outlook on how your India business has evolved over the years, the challenges, the major achievements, etc?

GE has been operating in India since 1902. We helped built Asia's first Hydropower plant near Mysore. Since then, we have set up and grown several different businesses in the country. Today, we operate in the areas of aerospace and energy. Our over 14,000 employees work across 20+ offices, 12 factories, and four technology centres. I am proud to mention that 50 percent of all electricity transmitted and distributed in India is done using GE technology. That said, we are a proud partner to Indian commercial and military aviation. Importantly, most commercial airlines use planes powered by GE or partner engines. In the defence sector, the Indian Air Force's Light Combat Aircraft is powered by GE's F404 engine.

GE last year entered into a partnership with HAL 99 F404GE-IN20 engines for Tejas Light Combat Aircraft. These engines have been in use in Tejas since 2004. Can you detail the deal and what kind of further enhancement comes as part of the deal?

In Aug 2021, we received an additional order for 99 F404 engines from HAL for the LCA Mk1A Tejas Aircraft. GE is working diligently to manufacture these engines, which will be shipped to HAL for installation on the aircraft. Indian Government has also approved $800 million (Rs 5,375 crore) for the prototype development, testing, and certification of the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas Mk2 powered by GE F414 INS6 engine.