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Airbus Helicopters joint venture with Mahindra Defense in India

Airbus Helicopters and Mahindra Defense are to form a joint venture to pursue Indian military contracts for helicopters.

By Richard Tomkins
Airbus Helicopters, manufacturer of military aircraft such as this Super Puma, is to form a joint venture with an Indian company. Photograph by Airbus Helicopters.
Airbus Helicopters, manufacturer of military aircraft such as this Super Puma, is to form a joint venture with an Indian company. Photograph by Airbus Helicopters.

NEW DELHI, July 6 (UPI) -- Airbus Helicopters and India's Mahindra Defense have agreed to form a joint venture to produce helicopters in the country to meet local military needs.

Airbus and Mahindra Defense, a subsidiary of the Mahindra Group, said the two companies will not enter discussions to finalize the joint venture which will act as the prime contractor for India's military helicopter tenders.

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"We have an unparalleled track-record of successful industrial collaborations with local partners across the world," said Guillaume Faury, Airbus Helicopters president and chief executive officer. "We are convinced that with Mahindra we will not only have a mutually rewarding association but one which will offer immense benefits to India.

"The joint venture will be dedicated to supplying the Indian Armed Forces with Made-in-India, state-of-the-art helicopters of high reliability, quality and safety standard based on combat-proven platforms."

Airbus said the joint venture aims to become the first private Indian helicopter manufacturer under the 'Make in India' initiative, creating hundreds of high-tech jobs locally and lead to a flow of technologies to India if its selected in government helicopter tenders.

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