TASL to make Airbus A320neo aircraft cargo and bulk cargo doors in Hyderabad

HYDERABAD: French aerospace giant Airbus on Wednesday said it has awarded a contract to Tata Advanced Systems Ltd (TASL) to manufacture cargo and bulk cargo doors of its A320neo aircraft family as part of efforts to boost its competitiveness in the single aisle aircraft market and ramp up the A320 programme.

TASL will be making these doors using cutting-edge robotics and automation technology at a new facility in Hyderabad. Each shipset will include two cargo doors and one bulk cargo door, Airbus said.

The contract was inked in Hyderabad on Wednesday by Olivier Cauquil, SVP of aerostructure procurement, Airbus, and Masood Hussainy, VP & HO of aerostructure & aero-engines, TASL.

Airbus already procures components and services worth $735 million each year from over 100 Indian suppliers with every Airbus commercial aircraft and helicopter having critical technologies and systems that are designed, manufactured and maintained in India.

"When it comes to supporting the development of India’s industrial capacities, Airbus is walking the talk. The latest contract underlines our continued commitment to ‘Make-in-India’ for an Aatmanirbhar Bharat,” said Rémi Maillard, president and managing director, Airbus India and South Asia.

“In TASL, we have a most trusted and able partner that will support the ramp-up of our A320neo family aircraft that has been the poster child of democratisation and transformation of India's aviation sector. We will continue to grow our industrial footprint and the aviation and aerospace ecosystem at a fast pace in India,” he added.

Commenting on the latest contract, Sukaran Singh, managing director and CEO, TASL said, “We have an ongoing relationship with Airbus based on trust and operational excellence, and this new contract win will further bolster our partnership in aerospace manufacturing in India.”

Apart from this, Airbus will also build the C295 military aircraft Final Assembly Line (FAL) with TASL in Gujarat, in what is touted as the first concrete, large-scale Make-in-India manufacturing aerospace programme in the private sector. This programme will unlock the potential for cutting-edge design, component manufacturing, aircraft assembly and services capabilities across the value chain, fully addressing the Government of India’s stated ambition of an ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ in defence manufacturing, Airbus said.

Airbus said that along with its supply chain, it supports nearly 10,000 jobs in India and expects this number to rise to 15,000 by 2025. This even as the C295 military aircraft programme will lead to the creation of 25,000 direct and indirect jobs over 10 years, it added.