India’s First Private Trainer Aircraft Manufacturing Plant Announced for Hisar. In a major shot in the arm for India’s aviation industry, Hisar in Haryana is expected to host India’s first private-sector trainer aircraft manufacturing plant by the end of this year. Sakthi Group of Tamil Nadu and Austria’s Diamond Aircraft Industries have jointly decided to put up a final assembly line (FAL) for the DA40 NG trainer aircraft, to be supplied to flying schools across the country.
The Aero Club of India on Tuesday saw Sakthi Aircraft Industry, the joint venture of Sakthi Group and Diamond Aircraft, ink an initial pact to supply 200 DA40 NG planes to associated flying training organisations (FTOs). The first 50 of them will be shipped in as complete knocked-down (CKD) kits from Austria and Canada and assembled in India. The other 150 planes will be manufactured at the proposed Hisar plant, which is likely to commence production by the end of 2025.
The joint venture will produce 100 trainer aircraft per year, eyeing India’s fast-growing aviation industry. Managing Director and CEO Vaibhav D said that in five years’ time, the company plans to incorporate 60-70% India-sourced components into the locally manufactured DA40 NG aircraft, from Indian suppliers already contracted with international giants Airbus and Boeing. The 200-aircraft order, which is one of the largest in the world for trainer aircraft, is to be completed by 2027.
Though monetary figures of the transaction are not made public, industry experts project that the DA40 NG plane costs approximately $600,000 per aircraft. The plane is highly acclaimed for its efficiency, safety, and technology, so it is an attractive option both for training purposes and private flying. Its rivals in the market for trainer aircraft are international brands such as Cessna and Tecnam.
Aviation Boom Demands More Pilots
India’s aviation sector is experiencing exponential growth, with carriers making massive plane orders to address skyrocketing demand. Civil Aviation Minister K. Rammohan Naidu emphasized that India would need 30,000 pilots within the next 15-20 years—considerably higher than India’s current 6,000-7,000 pilots. With more than 1,700 aircraft already ordered by Indian carriers and the commercial fleet of the country already in excess of 800 aircraft, the demand for a solid flying training system is greater than ever before.
Currently, India possesses 38 FTOs with additional ones likely to be created in order to cater to growing demand. The joint venture between the Aero Club of India and Sakthi Aircraft Industry will be able to train 1,000 commercial pilots each year, totaling 10,000 pilots within 10 years. As the owner of India’s largest fleet of trainer aircraft, the Aero Club of India has been instrumental in shaping the country’s pilot training facilities.
The Aero Club of India would act as the hub aggregator in terms of handling demand, allocation of aircraft, and smooth handovers to FTOs, as per the terms of the pact. The facilities of Sakthi Aircraft Industry and Diamond Aircraft Industries will create a world-class manufacturing base for manufacturing and sustaining the DA40 NG aircraft locally in India and delivering extensive lifecycle support.
This program is a landmark move to enhance India’s aviation strength, providing a steady supply of locally trained pilots and minimizing dependence on foreign-made trainer planes.
