Lockheed Martin will establish additional production and assembly capacity in India if awarded the MTA contract.
Lockheed Martin and Tata Advanced Systems Limited have come together to establish Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility in India to support the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) existing fleet of 12 C-130Js as well as other global Super Hercules fleets. This facility is another major milestone achieved in the Defence MRO sector in India with the Tata Group leading the way for establishing a sound and self-reliant MRO ecosystem in the country.
The agreement further stresses on expanding C-130J manufacturing and assembly in India to produce aircraft for the IAF’s Medium Transport Aircraft (MTA) program. However, this manufacturing facility will be subject to US and Indian government’s approvals. Also, Lockheed Martin will establish additional production and assembly capacity in India if awarded the MTA contract.
The agreement between Lockheed Martin and Tata Advanced Systems is a testament of India’s growing dominance as upcoming MRO hub with overseas OEMs increasing investments and joint ventures with their Indian counterparts.
Calling this as a milestone achievement for Tata Advanced Systems, Sukaran Singh, chief executive officer and managing director of Tata Advanced Systems stresses on the further deepening relations between Lockheed Martin and Tata’s with the addition of aerostructure work by Tata Advanced Systems for Lockheed Martin platforms. “The current announcement is also significant as it marks the entry of Tata Advanced Systems into the defence MRO space in India for large aircraft platforms,” says Singh.
Rod McLean, vice president and general manager of the Air Mobility and Maritime Missions line of business at Lockheed Martin reiterates Lockheed Martin’s commitment to a self-reliant India. “This agreement will further strengthen the degree of confidence that exists in our relationships with our partners in India and the Indian industry at large,” adds Rod.
Meanwhile, Lockheed Martin will continue to build C-130Js for the US government and other global operators at the existing Super Hercules production facility in Marietta, Georgia, USA. This announcement marks a significant step in enhancing India’s defence and aerospace capabilities while also deepening India-US strategic ties.
The C-130J is known as the world’s workhorse, not just for its large global presence, but also for its international supply chain partners including the single source provider of empennages — Tata Lockheed Martin Aerostructures Limited in Hyderabad.
The IAF is actively seeking to acquire up to 80 medium transport aircraft and issued a request for information (RFI) last year. Lockheed Martin responded to the RFI as the C-130J-30 Super Hercules is ideally suited to meet the requirements.
Also Read: Air India breaks ground on new MRO facility in Bangalore
Lockheed Martin and Tata Advanced Systems Limited have a long-standing partnership through the Tata Lockheed Martin Aerostructures Ltd., (TLMAL) joint venture. Established in 2010, TLMAL exemplifies the government of India’s “Make in India“ objectives and has the distinction of being the single global source of C-130J empennage assemblies included on all new Super Hercules aircraft produced in the United States. To date, TLMAL has manufactured more than 220 C-130J empennages.
