India’s Make-in-India C-295 tactical transport programme will see the first Made-in-India C-295 roll out from Tata-Airbus’s Vadodara final assembly line in September 2026, under a ₹21,935-crore contract signed in September 2021 to buy 56 aircraft for the Indian Air Force (IAF) and replace its ageing Avro fleet, with 40 to be manufactured domestically and delivered by August 2031. The IAF has already received the initial 16 Spain-built C-295s, boosting tactical airlift along northern and island fronts. Defence planning for 2026 includes induction of several indigenous systems, including locally built transport aircraft, to enhance strategic mobility and logistics. The programme strengthens India’s defence industrial base, integrates MSMEs into aerospace supply chains, and advances self-reliance.