Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez held a roadshow in Gujarat's Vadodara on Monday ahead of inaugurating the Final Assembly Line Plant of C295 aircraft at the Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL) facility.
Both sides of the 2.5 km stretch between the airport and TASL were thrived with cultural performances and people who cheered on the two leaders as they moved down the road. They will inaugurate the complex for manufacturing C-295 aircraft by TAS, the first private sector final assembly line for military aircraft in India. As many as 40 aircraft will be built in the Vadodara facility under the agreement while 16 aircraft will be directly delivered by aviation company Airbus.
TATA Advanced Systems Limited is responsible for making these 40 aircraft in the country and will be the first private sector final assembly line (FAL) for military planes in India.
The making of the aircraft will deploy the full development of a complete ecosystem, from manufacture to assembly, test and qualification, to delivery and maintenance of the complete life cycle of the aircraft.
Apart from Tatas, leading defence public sector units, such as Bharat Electronics and Bharat Dynamics, as well as private micro, small and medium enterprises will also contribute to this programme.
PM Modi had laid the foundation stone for the facility in October 2022.
Modi and Sánchez are also scheduled to visit the historic Laxmi Vilas Palace, where they will hold a bilateral meeting organised by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA).
The meeting will be followed by lunch at the palace before the two leaders will proceed to their respective destinations. Sánchez will also visit Mumbai before leaving for Spain at around 12.30 am Wednesday, according to his schedule shared by the MEA.