US aerospace major Boeing will set up a logistics center in India with an investment of about Rs 200 crore to stock spares for its customer airlines.
With this investment, the company wants to ensure expeditious delivery of spares to commercial airlines and then subsequently cater to defense aircraft too, Boeing India president Salil Gupte informed.
This move comes just ahead of Air India’s expected mega firm order for 220 Boeing planes – 190 single-aisle B737 Max, 20 B787 Dreamliners, and 10 B777X – which will come with options for a large number of additional aircraft that Tata Group can convert to firm order at a subsequent date without long delivery periods.
“We have not yet decided on the location of the proposed India logistics center. To begin with, it will cater to our commercial airline and as a distribution center for our industrial customers. We will be housing spare parts in this center as per customer requirements so that they can get the same expeditiously. This will significantly reduce the time aircraft need to be on the ground awaiting spares. Later on, we will keep spares for military aircraft at this center,” Gupte said.
Meanwhile, to continue supporting the development of the aviation ecosystem in the country” Boeing has launched its first global support center (GSC) in India, the company said in a statement on Monday.
The Gurgaon-based GSC will deliver customized operational efficiency and safety improvement projects for Boeing’s airline customers, civil aviation regulatory bodies, and other industry stakeholders.
“With India continuing to see an unprecedented surge in civil aviation traffic, Boeing is committed to innovating and bringing value to modernize the Indian aviation ecosystem,” said Gupte, adding, the GSC “will provide a platform to enable knowledge transfer for enhancing safety and increasing operational efficiency for Boeing’s airline partners in the country.”
The GSC, will conduct technical workshops and projects to support aircraft reliability, enhance airplane performance, and encourage the adoption of airplane health management systems, Boeing says.
