By Brig. VK Atray(Retd.)
New Delhi. 01 September 2017. “We are committed to the India-Sweden relationship and in bringing the latest technology and skills to India,” reiterated Håkan Buskhe, CEO and President of Saab AB.
Swedish Defence and Security major Saab and Indian infrastructure conglomerate Adani Group have joined hands for a collaboration plan within aerospace and defence in India, aligned with the Government of India’s Make in India initiative.
The intended collaboration would encompass design, development and production of Gripen for India and other high-tech products of national importance for India and also the creation of joint ventures in India in line with and in support of the Make In India policy.
“Our plans in India are to create a new defence eco-system that would involve many partners, vendors and suppliers. To achieve this, we need a strong Indian partner who can help create the framework for the infrastructure and eco-system to come into place,” said Buskhe.
Saab, in partnership with Adani Group, will discuss possibilities to offer solutions to bring required design and manufacturing capabilities in defence and aerospace to India. A collaboration between Saab and Adani will combine the technical and product excellence of Saab, along with the industrial engineering, system integration and mega project execution capabilities of Adani with the intention to manufacture defence systems locally in India.
With India’s focus on creating future-proof and home-grown capabilities across all industries, Saab and Adani will explore how to cooperate to develop a wider aerospace and defence ecosystem in India. A critical part of a joint road map would be to encourage the development of small and medium sized enterprises along with a robust national supply chain.
“In continuation of our vision of nation building, we are keen to play an instrumental role in helping transform India into a destination for world class high-tech defence manufacturing,” says Gautam Adani, Chairman of Adani Group. “We are proud of our enduring relationship with Saab and look forward to partnering in major projects such as Gripen. Our various collaborations in aerospace and defence sectors will help establish new production lines in India, generate employment and build sustainable skills.”
The intended collaboration would include Gripen for India. Gripen would be offered to the Indian Government as the best solution for India’s single-engine fighter aircraft programme. The collaboration would also include projects, programs and technologies of national importance to India.
The parties’ plan to develop the relationship into a structure of joint ventures in India for execution of the programs, including the single engine fighter program, in order to support the Make in India policy and exhibit the parties long term commitment to be jointly successful.
Gripen is a modern multi-role fighter aircraft featuring state-of-the-art technology, including advanced data links and sensors plus a unique extensive electronic warfare suite. Gripen can perform all air-to-air, air-to-surface and reconaissance missions with the most modern range of weapons and systems.
