Aerospace Diary

Kurt Baes, Willem Romanus, Mattias Banck of Arthur D. Little The aerospace and defense (A&D) industry today struggles with a duality: defense-driven segments take hits due to significant governmental budget cuts, while commercial aircraft manufacturing is enjoying double-digit growth. Commercial aircraft deliveries at Airbus and Boeing grew by a CAGR of 7.5% between 2010 and 2015, with both companies registering record annual deliveries in recent years. Nevertheless, the commercial aircraft value chain is under stress: only half of the manufacturing firms in the chain show healthy profitability growth, and European players especially have struggled to enhance shareholder value. Which strategies should players take to surf the growth wave? Commercial aircraft manufacturing: steady and strong growth, sizeable order backlog Air traffic growth and the replacement of ageing fuel-inefficient aircrafts are driving the global commercial aircraft market. The two major OEMs, Ai...

05th August 2015 - 9:38  by  Neelam Mathews  in Delhi India has re-started its Future Infantry Combat Vehicle (FICV) programme but industry is not convinced it will come to fruition. An Indian OEM has told  Shephard  that developing prototype vehicles requires a significant amount of investment and the specifications are too demanding. ‘The project is long winded as it involves forming partnerships with foreign vendors and a customised design for the FICV according to the complicated needs proposed by the Indian Army,’ the OEM said. ‘No company will invest capability on the basis of a probability of being chosen…. Besides the specs are too demanding for the project to see light of day,’ the company added. The Ministry of Defence has issued an Expression of Intent (EOI) to ten bidders for approximately 2600 FICV for the Indian Army.  The government’s FICV brief states the multi-role platform should move alongside armoured (tanks), provide f...

Neelam Mathews June 19, 2015 Bangalore-based Aequs Aerospace, India’s largest private integrated aerospace components maker, has fully acquired Paris, Texas-based T&K Machine. This is the first international aerospace-related manufacturing buy by an Indian company, Aequs chairman and  CEO  Aravind Melligeri told  AIN . “This acquisition will give us an entry into Boeing and other customers. The   U.S.   company will handle low volume runs that include shipsets below four units, primarily for the   B777   and 747, as they provide logistic challenges to ship,” said Melligeri. “The   U.S.   aerospace and defense industry might have slowed down for now, but we do know business will open soon.” Larger volumes will be manufactured in Aequs’ India facility. “A large inventory provides enough room for cost savings,” he said. Aequs hopes to absorb through its  U.S.  facility packages worth $10 million this year. “A...

Opinion Neelam Mathews Nov 6, 2014 Theoretically, it’s a great concept. Let Indian companies be the prime bidders in partnership with OEMs for mega defense projects like the Avro replacement and now Army/IAF helicopters for which an RFI has been released. However, the practical aspect is far behind. The feeling I’m getting is there isn’t too much enthusiasm by the Indian industry that had opposed the higher FDI limit in defense. Reasons? Unless there is accountability by an OEM, how can the industry take responsibility for the quality of the end-product? As far as the OEM goes, how will it feel comfortable in committing delivery to its partner with little say in the supply chain if it has no ownership and zero confidence in the capability of an industry that is in its infant stage? So, is there a solution? Many are advocating a return to DPP 2011, that allows bids to go to OEMs despite unattractive offsets. By the way, the new government really needs to ensure offs...

PARIS AIR SHOW  »  2013 by    NEELAM MATHEWS HAL’s Light Combat Aircraft, a Mach 1.8, multi-role fighter that first flew last year, is scheduled to undergo carrier compatibility tests before year-end. June 17, 2013, 5:15 AM A target for criticism over delays in projects in the past, India’s largest defense manufacturer, government-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. ( HAL ) is undergoing a transformation of its human resource through training and  innovative programs . This is focusing on two urgent requirements–the overdue Light Combat Aircraft ( LCA ); and the Intermediate Jet Trainer ( IJT ).  HAL  (Chalet A 124) has confirmed that the projects will go into production in the next five years. Even as India opens up to procuring more Western military aircraft and its civil fleet grows,  HAL ’s inclination to establish partnerships is becoming increasingly apparent. For example drawing on its inherent str...

Neelam Mathews May 13, 2013   The government must have its eyes at the back of its head if it cannot recognize that of the 7980 Tatra trucks (including those with DRDO and Brahmos), around 2800 are off the road! That’s a scary figure and I’d hate to be head of ops should there be a national emergency. While around 20-30% parts are available in India, in the absence of purchase of further parts, the number of trucks out of operation are increasing day by day!  It is increasingly clear that the logistics sector of the army is most crippled by the off road trucks. Despite the fact there has been no blacklisting of either BEML or Tatra, it is the fear of the unknown and lack of decision making that has resulted in no action being taken in acquiring Tatra parts. As is the mandate of procurement, repairs are carried out at various Army workshops, though the spares are acquired from BEML only by the Master General of   Ordinance Service ( MGO) Branch. And, yes,...

Neelam Mathews March 17, 2013   " Within a few months we are going to change the defense procurement procedure again,” Defense Minister A.K. Antony told Parliament recently, sending shudders down the spines of OEMs who privately voiced their opinion saying this is was a kneejerk reaction to the Augusta Westland scam. Though I am not opinionated and not questioning whether this is right or wrong, good or bad, one wonders if this kneejerk reaction is the way we will design our policies and planning in the present and future?  Calling indigenization the “ultimate solution to the scourge of corruption…. (and) Because of the operational necessity of the services, on the request that they need the most modern equipment to meet the operational necessity, the Government moves to import any high-value equipment from foreign sources,” Antony said."   Here we go again!  Always a loophole! Many OEMs would react to the fact that indigenization and build-out of defen...

Neelam Mathews Feb 27, 2013 We will get to the bottom of this," said AK Antony in Parliament on the AW helicopters scam deal answering a query of an Opposition party member. How low is the bottom, we ask? Like the deep blue sea, one suspects. a place we can never reach! No talk about why the Integrity Pact that makes it mandatory for the Italian company to release information in case of foul play. What sort of wussies are we? Release big amounts of cash and have the OEM dictate to you? Antony made sure his boring speech that totally went off track with a bit of emotion, had most of the members snoring! We will get to the bottom of this, said Antony."My party is fully backing me."  Really?  So, what's new? "There is a sense of helplessness..," said Jaitley of Antony's speech. Find the bribe-takers, he said. "For 3 decades India has a no middlemen policy. Have we made a breakthrough in a single  case?" 'What did the Bofors JPC d...

Neelam Mathews Feb 22, 2013 When will we as a nation stop shaming ourselves? I am no saint and don't profess to be one but as a silent bystander observing the stuff around us, often wonder, how can we be so passive to happenings around us with such finesse, lack of concern and no appetite to question. Take the RFP the BSF released for two medium transport that had CASA 295 and Alenia's C-27J as final contenders in 2010. The Technical Evaluation Committee cleared  the L1 CASA 295 that came in for commercial opening in 2010. When the contract negotiations started, an MoD official told Aerospace Diary that suddenly the BSF needed a civil certification (not mentioned in the RFP). The OEM, it is believed, agreed. However, out of the blue, it was announced ownership was an issue as was the maintenance of the aircraft. It was also pointed out rather late in the day,a signature had been forged  during the TEC. Why this was done remains a mystery till this day. Nobody was brought...