India on Tuesday became the 16th country to procure the Apache when the Indian Air Force (IAF) inducted eight of them at the Pathankot Air Base. In June last year, TBAL delivered its first AH-64 Apache helicopter fuselage from the Hyderabad facility

PATHANKOT: Giving a fillip to the Modi government’s ‘Make in India’ initiative, a major component of the Apache attack helicopters for the Indian Army will be made indigenously.

The fuselage of the six Apaches for the army will be made at the TATA Boeing Aerospace Limited (TBAL) facility in Hyderabad, Salil Gupte, President, Boeing India told ET. He also said that the fuselages for a global demand of Apaches will also be made at the facility.

India on Tuesday became the 16th country to procure the Apache when the Indian Air Force (IAF) inducted eight of them at the Pathankot Air Base. The IAF is using the latest version of the Apache known as AH-64E. This variant is flown by the US Army. Other customers of the Apache are the UK, Israel and Japan. Since 1984, the US Army and other nations have received more than 2,200 AH-64 Apache helicopters.

“The fuselage being made in Hyderabad are for global orders and the six Apaches for Indian Army...This is a huge part of Make in India. We have just started the line and are moving into the phased production at the moment...We are quite excited about the new fuselage,” said Gupte.

However, he declined to comment on when the Apaches for the army will be ready. In August 2017, the Defence Acquisition Council led by the then Defence Minister Arun Jaitley had cleared the procurement of the six Apaches for the army at a cost of Rs 4,168 crore.

Earlier during the IAF’s Apache induction ceremony Gupte said, “Boeing is committed to supporting the modernisation requirements of the Indian armed forces and maintaining them to be mission-ready.”

“We are confident that the Apaches will be an indispensable asset to the Indian Air Force. We will continue our efforts to deliver advanced capabilities to India’s defence forces,” added Gupte.

In June last year, TBAL delivered its first AH-64 Apache helicopter fuselage from the Hyderabad facility. The fuselage was transported to Boeing’s Apache manufacturing facility in Mesa, Arizona for integration into the final assembly line. The delivery came within a year of the aerospace joint venture facility becoming operational. The facility will be the sole global producer of fuselages for Apaches delivered by Boeing to its global customers including the US Army. TBAL is a joint venture between US aerospace giant, Boeing, and TATA Advanced Systems Limited.