CHENNAI: The coastal areas of Tamil Nadu could soon see amphibious aircraft service as a private company is planning to set up seven waterdromes in Tamil Nadu and three in Puducherry.
After the Tamil Nadu government launched the renewed aerospace and defence policy recently, Australia-based Amphibian Aerospace Industries, manufacturers of Albatross amphibious aircraft, tied up with Chennai-based def-tech company Hawking Defence Services to establish a unit in Tamil Nadu to manufacture aircraft components and MRO services.
Albatross is a 28-seater amphibious aircraft capable of landing and taking off from land, water and snow. “We are looking at an investment of approximately Rs 1,000 crore in the next five years. Our aviation arm is expected to create around 850 direct jobs and thousands of indirect jobs too,” said Vijayanarayanan Rapalli, chairman, Hawking Defence.
“We are awaiting clearance (for the waterdromes) from the environment agencies and the ministry of civil aviation,” Rajeev Koundinya, CEO, Hawking Defence, told TNIE. B Krishnamoorthy, special secretary and project director, Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation Limited (TIDCO) told TNIE that the agreement would boost Tamil Nadu regional aerial connectivity through helicopters (TN REACH) initiative, which aims to utilize over 80 unused helipads across the state to provide intercity and town connectivity. Wing Commander P Madhusoodhanan, V-P, Aerospace & Defence, TIDCO, said, “The aircraft has capability to land on water bodies with 650m length, including lakes. This would be a gamechanger.”
Sources said the company will manufacture components for Albatross and assemble them at its plant in Thiruvallur district and sell it to its clients.