N. Chandrasekaran, Chairman, Tata Sons Reviews Strategic Defence Programmes, Upcoming C130J MRO Facility Near Bengaluru
Bengaluru. Mr. N. Chandrasekaran, Chairman, Tata Sons, on June 2, visited the upcoming Defence MRO (Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul) site near Bengaluru Airport. Mr. Chandrasekaran was accompanied by Mr. Sukaran Singh, Managing Director, Tata Advanced System Ltd (TASL) and other members of the senior management team. TASL is setting up India’s first private defence MRO facility here, spanning 15,000 square metres on 16 acres of land. The facility is slated for commissioning by end-December 2026 and will conduct heavy maintenance and avionics upgrades for the Lockheed Martin C130J transport aircraft employing over 250 personnel.
Mr. Chandrasekaran also visited the TASL e-City facility, where he inspected the UAV manufacturing facility, optronics product lines, and land mobility displays. This facility includes TASL’s strategic UAV programme where unique capabilities have been designed and integrated in India to create new platforms. The Tata Sons Chairman was briefed on TASL’s indigenously developed Loitering Munitions (LMs) platform, showcasing an upgraded range with operational ranges extending from 50 km to hundreds of Km and heavier payload capabilities.
The Chairman appreciated that TASL Land Mobility Division has internationalized the footprint, extended the reach and supplied over 4000 such multi axle high mobility platforms with applications to Royal Moroccan Army and Armenian Armed Forces in last three years. TASL’s value add on the JLR Defender vehicles for use in Military applications by adding optronics, navigation aids, armouring meeting variety of end uses was also acknowledged by Mr. Chandrasekaran as a good example of synergies being drawn between group companies. The Advanced Armoured Platform – which is the first tracked combat vehicle designed and built jointly with DRDO and integrated with TASL in-house developed 30 mm crewless turret was also showcased.
TASL Vemagal facility was the final stop during Mr. Chandrasekaran’s visit. He walked through the Tata Advanced Systems – Airbus H125 FAL, dedicated to the India H125 programme, and a significant milestone for the country’s rotary-wing aerospace manufacturing ecosystem. This was followed by an inspection of the Defence Vemagal facilities, which included a comprehensive review of the C295 wiring harness facility, the Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System (ATAGS), Mounted Gun Systems (MGS), and launcher system integration hangars.
The visit reinforced Tata Group’s strategic focus in defence business with TASL which is leveraging indigenous innovation, advanced engineering, and industrial scale to contribute meaningfully to national security objectives.
