First Private Indian Helicopter Manufacturer JV

First Private Indian Helicopter Manufacturer JV

Question : First private Indian helicopter manufacturer under the Make in India initiative in the defence sector has recently been formed. Provide an overview of this as well as other areas where private spending will be initiated in this secto

- Proposed JV is the first private Indian helicopter manufacturer JV under the Make in India initiative

- Airbus Helicopters and Mahindra Defence, a section of Mahindra Group have signed the MoU to

- form the JV

- The JV aims to produce helicopters in India and jointly bid for defence contracts under the Make in India Programme of the government

- JV aims to develop an indigenous industrial ecosystem pertaining to helicopters

- JV will supply IAS with Made in India, state of the art helicopters which are highly reliable and of quality standards on combat proven platform

- The JV will also act as a prime contractor for Indian military helicopter tenders

- This also comprises reconnaissance and surveillance helicopters namely the Naval utility helicopter and the Naval multi-role helicopter programmes

- Mahindras have considerable expertise in fixed wing, automotive and engineering sectors and AirBus aims to offer best in class rotorcraft platforms

- The next generation helicopters to answer India’s defence needs and have the potential for exports in the future will be the result of this JV

- JV will also lead to job creation and flow of cutting edge technologies to India

- As per the JV between Mahindra Defence and Airbus Helicopters, Airbus will pick up maximum 49% stake as per current permissible FDI limit to manufacture helicopters under the Make in India initiative

Areas where Government Aims for Private Spending in Defence Sector

- Naval utility helicopter: 100 platforms totalling USD 1.5 billion

- Light utility helicopter: 387 platforms worth USD 2 billion

- Basic Trainer Programme: 106 platforms worth USD 1.3 billion

- Project 75(submarine): 6 platforms equalling USD 10 billion

- Avro Replacement Programme: 56 platforms of USD 3 billion

- Naval multi role helicopter: 123 platforms worth USD 4 billion

Facts and Stats

- Budget 2015 set aside Rs. 2,46,727 crore (US$ 40.4 billion) for defence

- This amounts to a 7.7 per cent increase over the previous year’s allocation.

- The defence industry is at the heart of Make in India