By: Ravindra Naidu, CEO – Mission Systems & Propulsion, Raghu Vamsi Aerospace Group
Over the past decade, I have seen India’s aerospace and defence manufacturing sector move through a phase that can only be described as a structural shift. It did not happen through any single breakthrough. It came from hundreds of decisions made across factories, labs, design floors, and policy rooms. But if I had to point to the two capabilities that have accelerated our progress the most, it would be composites and precision sheet-metal fabrication. These two areas have changed how India builds aircraft structures, sub-systems, and components, and they are influencing how global OEMs view India’s long-term role in their supply chains.
The most visible change is happening around military programs. Earlier, Indian manufacturers were mostly involved in low-complexity parts. Today, we are producing structures and assemblies that directly feed into platforms like the LCA Tejas and various trainer aircraft. Composite airframe elements, control surfaces, fairings, ducts, housings, and enclosures are being built to standards that meet the expectations of both Indian and global agencies. The rise of UAVs, whether HALE, MALE, tactical drones, or loitering munitions, has expanded this ecosystem even further. Composite parts for wings, fuselage panels, payload bays, and support brackets are now being made domestically with increasing confidence. Alongside this, helicopter manufacturing, missile programs, and engine-linked components are turning to both composites and sheet-metal fabrication for weight and performance advantages. Even space and re-entry applications, which demand extreme reliability, have begun sourcing specific components from Indian
This depth of capability did not appear on its own. Policy direction played a crucial role. There was a period when many Indian companies hesitated to invest heavily in aerospace because the demand appeared cyclical and dependent on imports. That equation changed once the government pushed Make in India, placed clear expectations on domestic value addition, and aligned defence procurement to encourage private participation. Certification frameworks such as DGCA norms, AS 9100, NADCAP; became central to the way manufacturing companies structured their operations. In retrospect, this was necessary. Aerospace manufacturing is unforgiving; without discipline, processes collapse. Today, the standards that once felt aspirational are part of our daily vocabulary, and this has helped build credibility with global OEMs.
The global supply landscape also shifted in a way that favoured India. Aerospace and defence companies have been looking for the best-cost countries for years, but disruptions in recent times forced them to move faster. They wanted alternatives that offered competitive pricing, but more importantly, predictable capacity and lower risk. India had the right mix at the right moment: engineering talent, maturing quality systems, and growing production infrastructure. As OEMs recalibrated their sourcing strategies, India moved higher on their lists. What began as trial projects or prototypes has now expanded into long-term supply arrangements in areas like composite skins, sheet-metal brackets, avionics enclosures, and sub-assemblies that demand both precision and consistency.
Inside our factories, the technology landscape has changed quietly but significantly. Composites are no longer limited to hand layups. We work with carbon fibre, glass fibre, advanced resins, prepregs, and out-of-autoclave processes that allow us to meet varied curing and strength requirements. Resin transfer moulding, vacuum infusion, and improved tooling design have made production more reliable and scalable. Sheet-metal fabrication has undergone its own evolution. Stamping has become more accurate, hydroforming allows for more complex geometries, and CNC bending ensures repeatability. Laser cutting, EDM machining, and advanced surface finishing methods have made Indian facilities far more competitive than they were even five or seven years ago. The emergence of hybrid structures, where metal and composites are combined to achieve optimal weight and strength, has further expanded the scope of what we can deliver.
Materials and testing infrastructure have also strengthened. A few years ago, almost every critical material, such as carbon fiber, adhesives, and resins, had to be imported. The situation is gradually improving. Domestic suppliers are building capacity in aviation-grade inputs, and more labs are coming up across the country to handle material characterization, fatigue testing, and non-destructive evaluation. Collaboration with academic institutes and national research labs has become more practical and outcome-driven, especially for R&D work that demands long cycles. These developments help reduce bottlenecks, shorten qualification timelines, and give OEMs more confidence in India’s ability to support long-term programs.
Cost and performance advantages are equally important. When we shift parts from conventional metals to composites, weight reductions directly translate into better fuel efficiency and operational savings. Sheet-metal processes, when optimized, reduce machining time and material wastage. Faster NPI cycles allow us to bring new designs into production sooner, and design flexibility helps us respond to customer requests without resetting entire systems. For customers balancing cost, timelines, and reliability, these improvements matter.
Supply chain resilience is another area where India now plays a meaningful role. Global aerospace companies want suppliers who can operate with stable logistics cycles and predictable delivery schedules. Building crucial parts locally means we no longer wait on complicated shipping chains or regions that can be affected by global tensions. For defence programs, where schedules are tightly linked to operational needs, this consistency matters. India’s growing hubs, whether in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune, or emerging clusters in other states, are helping create a manufacturing network that is not only efficient but capable of absorbing shocks.
None of this progress would be possible without talent. Aerospace manufacturing still relies heavily on the judgement and skill of engineers, technicians, and operators. Machines provide accuracy, but people provide the discipline needed to run them well. Over the years, I have seen a noticeable shift in how young engineers approach this sector. They are more curious, more willing to work on long-duration programs, and more open to learning specialized skills in composites, precision forming, and advanced machining. Industry partnerships with universities, technician training programs, and in-house capability building have all contributed to enlarging this talent pool. If we continue investing in skill development and R&D, India has the potential to become not just a manufacturing base but a design and engineering hub for aerospace programs.
Sustainability is often discussed in broad terms, but in aerospace, it comes down to practical improvements. Lighter composite structures help aircraft run more efficiently over their service life, which directly cuts fuel use. Better material utilization reduces waste. Across the industry, teams are now paying more attention to cleaner resin systems, ways to recover and reuse composite waste, and production methods that don’t demand as much energy. These are early steps, but they will become essential as aviation and defence align with global sustainability expectations.
Looking at where we stand today, I believe India is entering a stage where our strengths in composites and sheet-metal fabrication can anchor a larger role in global aerospace manufacturing. We are moving from being a supplementary base to being a dependable partner in programs that demand precision, certification discipline, and long-term stability. Challenges remain; capacity expansion, deeper material R&D, faster certification cycles, but the direction is clear. With the right mix of policy support, technological investment, and talent development, India can become one of the most trusted manufacturing destinations for the aerospace and defence industries.