Indian Rotorcraft Limited (IRL) is a company specialising in the manufacture of helicopters within India for the global market. Established in 2010, it is operated as a joint venture between Indian conglomerate Tata Sons and Anglo-Italian defense company Leonardo S.p.A. Ground was broken on a dedicated facility at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Hyderabad in March 2012; its completion has been delayed reportedly due to protracted rulings from overseeing Indian government agencies.
| Industry | Aviation |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2010 |
| Headquarters | , |
Area served | Worldwide |
| Products | helicopters, components |
| Owner | Tata Sons, Leonardo S.p.A. |
History
editIndian Rotorcraft was founded upon a partnership agreement signed between Tata Sons and Anglo-Italian helicopter manufacturer AgustaWestland (a company which has since been integrated into Leonardo S.p.A. in 2016) during January 2010.[1][2] At the time, India was viewed by helicopter manufacturers as one of the biggest potential growth markets. Speaking of the venture in 2012, Ratan Tata, chairman of Tata Sons, stated: "The project is integral to our plans in the aerospace sector and we look forward to an enduring and successful partnership with AgustaWestland."[3]
During March 2012, Indian Rotorcraft broke ground on a 40,000m2 new facility adjacent to Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Hyderabad, India; once complete, this site, which includes a main assembly facility, flight hangar, offices and several helicopter landing pads, will accommodate the assembly, customisation and flight-testing of helicopters for the global market.[4] The first helicopters to be manufactured by the joint venture is slated to be the AgustaWestland AW119Ke; other types, such as the AgustaWestland AW101, are likely to follow in the future.[3] Tata have mooted plan to manufacture up to 80 per cent of the Sikorsky S-92 at the facility as well. In addition to whole rotorcraft, the joint venture shall also engage in the manufacture of components for various other military and commercial aircraft.[3]
Assembly activity, which is to reportedly have the initial capacity to complete a maximum of 30 helicopters per year, was at one point slated to commence during April 2014.[3][5] During summer 2015, it was reported that further delays to starting assembly were likely as the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB), an Indian government agency, repeatedly deferred a pending decision on the proposal.[6] During September 2015, after two years of deferment, the proposal was at last cleared by the FIPB, allowing work to proceed; at the time, an Indian Rotorcraft spokesperson was unwilling to commit to a final timeframe for production rollout.[7] However, during May 2016, another pending ruling by the FIPB was deferred without any stated reason; allegedly, the FIPB is liaising with the Indian Ministry of Defence on the matter.[8][9] The Indian government's apparent hesitancy on the issue has been alleged to be linked to the 2013 Indian helicopter bribery scandal.[10]
References
edit- ^ Govindasamy, Siva (1 March 2010). "Indian aerospace industry opens up". Flight International.
- ^ "Business briefs". Flight International. 30 November 2010.
- ^ a b c d Govindasamy, Siva (21 March 2012). "Indian Rotorcraft breaks ground on Hyderabad facility". Flight International.
- ^ V. Rishi Kumar. (15 March 2012). "Indian Rotorcraft breaks ground for Hyderabad copter facility". The Hindu. Retrieved 15 March 2012.
- ^ Rao, Radhakrishna (11 November 2013). "India JV may open way back for AgustaWestland". Flight International.
- ^ "Assembling of AW choppers by IRL likely to be delayed". Business Line. 22 July 2015.
- ^ "FIPB greenlights Tata-AW chopper plant proposal in Hyderabad". livemint.com. 14 October 2015.
- ^ "Govt defers approval to AgustaWestland FDI in Indian joint venture". Hindustan Times. 3 May 2016.
- ^ "'FIPB has sought Defence Min inputs on FDI in Agusta, Tata JV'". Deccan Herald. 3 May 2016.
- ^ "Amid row over VVIP choppers scam, govt defers approval to AgustaWestland's FDI in Indian JV". indiatvnews.com. 2 May 2016.