The first C-295 medium tactical transport aircraft was inducted into the Indian Air Force on Monday, several pictures of which have surfaced. This transport aircraft will increase the logistics and other capabilities of the army. C-295 was inducted into the Air Force in a program organized at Hindon Air Force Station, Ghaziabad in the presence of Defense Minister Rajnath Singh. After this, Defense Minister Singh participated in ‘Sarva Dharma Puja’, which was organized to commemorate the induction of C-295 in the Air Force.
Air Force Chief Air Chief Marshal V.R. Choudhary attended the event along with senior officials of the Air Force and Airbus. Defense Minister Rajnath Singh shared pictures of the program on social media. The Defense Minister shared four pictures on social media platform X. In one of these, he is seen tying the Raksha Sutra in the plane.
The first C-295 aircraft has been inducted into Squadron No. 11 of the Air Force. It is one of the oldest squadrons of the Indian Air Force and is currently based at Vadodara Air Force Station. After two ‘sliding screens’ the aircraft was unveiled. ’11 Squadron: Pioneers of C-295MW’ and ‘Rhinos: The Trailblazers of C-295MW’ were written on these screens. The picture of the new aircraft was also shown. The one-horned rhinoceros is the symbol of Squadron 11.
‘Airbus Defense and Space Company’ handed over the first C295 transport aircraft to Indian Air Force (IAF) chief Air Chief Marshal VR Choudhary on September 13. With the aim of modernizing the Indian Air Force, the government had signed a deal with ‘Airbus Defense and Space Company’ two years ago to buy 56 C295 transport aircraft for Rs 21,935 crore. These aircraft will replace the aging Avro-748 fleet. This plane reached Vadodara on 20 September. Just a few days ago, it was handed over to the Indian Air Force in the southern city of Civelle, Spain.
Under an industrial partnership between the two companies, Airbus will deliver the first 16 C295 aircraft in ‘fly-away’ condition from its production plant in Seville by 2025. After this, the remaining 40 aircraft will be manufactured and assembled in India by ‘Tata Advanced Systems Limited’ (TASL) in Vadodara. Manufacturing of parts of these aircraft has already started at the ‘Main Constituent Assembly’ facility in Hyderabad. These parts will be sent to the ‘Final Assembly Line’ located in Vadodara, which is expected to be operational by November 2024.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had laid the foundation stone of the manufacturing facility of C295 aircraft in Vadodara in October last year. This will be the first military aircraft to be manufactured in India by a private consortium. The Indian Air Force (IAF) is purchasing C295 aircraft to replace its fleet of aging Avro-748 aircraft that entered service more than six decades ago. The C295 is considered an improved aircraft, which can be used for tactical transport of up to 71 soldiers or 50 paratroopers. Apart from this, it is used to deliver military equipment and supplies to those places which cannot be reached by existing heavy aircraft.
C295 aircraft is very useful for landing soldiers and dropping goods with the help of parachute. It can also be used to evacuate accident victims and sick people. The aircraft is capable of carrying out special operations as well as patrolling operations in disaster situations and coastal areas.
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