India’s first private sector unit for manufacturing Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) to cater to both the Indian armed forces and the global market was formally launched at Adani Aerospace Park near Shamshabad in Hyderabad creating an aerospace and defence ecosystem for manufacturing.
Built jointly by the Adani Defence & Aerospace and Israel-based Elbit Systems with an initial investment of $15 million, the 50,000 sq ft facility will develop the Hermes 900 medium altitude long-endurance UAVs of Elbit. For Elbit, it is the first facility outside Israel that will manufacture the Hermes 900.
The aerospace park, officially launched by Telangana’s Home Minister Mohammad Mahmood Ali, will also enable SMEs to do business here. Startups such as Comprotech, AutoTEC, Alpha Tool and Alpha Design Technologies who had been supplying to HAL, BDL, BEL and global OEMs, which will operate in the aviation park.
The unit will begin with the manufacture of complete carbon composite aerostructures for Hermes 900, followed by Hermes 480, catering to global markets.
Till India finalizes its order for 150 UAVs, the company will make fuselages for UAVs, which will be fitted with avionics in Israel before being delivered to customers in the global market, told Ashish Rajvanshi, Head Adani Defence and Aerospace.
