The fuselage of the Rafale fighter aircraft will be constructed outside of France for the first time thanks to an agreement announced Thursday by India’s Tata Advanced Systems and France’s Dassault Aviation.
India, the largest buyer of weapons in the world, has been trying to increase defense exports, which increased by 12% to $2.76 billion in the fiscal year that ended in March.
According to a statement from the firms, as part of the agreement, Tata will establish a production facility in Hyderabad, a city in southern India, to produce important structural components of the Rafale.
In the fiscal year 2028, the first fuselage parts are anticipated to leave the assembly line.
