The Hindu : India, Russia looking at joint ventures in aviation

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Apr 22, 2002

International

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India, Russia looking at joint ventures in aviation

By Vladimir Radyuhin

MOSCOW APRIL 21. A leading Russian aircraft manufacturer is proposing a strategic partnership with the Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. Pooling of resources is the only way for both India and Russia to survive as aviation-manufacturing nations, said Alexei Fyodorov, president, IRKUT aircraft building corporation, which is producing the SU-30MKI multi-role fighters for the Indian Air Force. ``Neither Russia nor India can compete on their own with four to five aerospace giants, such as Boeing, Lockheed-Martin and European Aeronautic Defence and Spares Co. (EADS), which are pushing for global domination,'' Mr. Fyodorov told The Hindu. "Our aviation industries face the choice of either becoming appendices of Western corporations or joining forces with each other to win a share of the aerospace market.''

This idea will dominate Mr. Fyodorov's address at an Indo-Russian seminar devoted to reforms in the defence sectors of the two countries. The seminar, organised by the Indo-Russian Security Forum at the India Habitat Centre, Delhi, on April 23-24, is expected to be addressed by the Defence Minister, George Fernandes, the Deputy Director of Russia's Rosoboronexport arms exporting monopoly, Viktor Komardin, as well as the CEOs of leading defence companies of both the countries.

The HAL and the IRKUT corporation, which have a long history of cooperation in building military aircraft are now working to change their relations to move from production under licence to joint projects, such as the construction of a new multi-role transport aircraft (MTA). Plans are afoot to set up a share-holding joint venture company which will handle R&D, production, marketing and after-sales servicing of the new MTA, to be built on the basis of the Russian IL-214T medium-haul transport plane. The MTA is expected to make its maiden flight in five to six years, Mr. Fyodorov said.

Military aviation is one of the more advanced areas of Indo-Russian defence cooperation, with Russian-built or designed aircraft accounting for about 80 per cent of the IAF inventory. Now the industrialists of the two countries are working to extend their cooperation to civil aviation. ``We are willing to invest in the Indian aerospace industry,'' Mr. Fyodorov said, ahead of his departure to Delhi. "By promoting a network of JVs and other joint projects, as well as by unifying our standards, technologies and personnel qualifications, we can gradually work our way towards the establishment of a joint Russian-Indian aircraft manufacturing sector capable of preserving its independence in the face of transatlantic domination.''

The convergence of the Indian and Russian aviation industries could be facilitated through the sharing of technologies and production facilities, he said.

``We can benefit from HAL's advanced technology for the production of composite materials, avionics and software... At the same time, we are strong in other areas, such as welding and titanium processing.''

By joining hands in manufacturing, the Indian and Russian aircraft builders can also expand their exports by opening their traditional markets to joint products.

India, for example, may supply onboard computers and altitude metres for the SU-30MKK planes Russia wants to sell to Malaysia.

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