DGAQA to set up testing facilities in Tamil Nadu for defence aviation sector

The Directorate General of Aeronautical Quality Assurance (DGAQA) will set up three facilities in Tamil Nadu, jointly with the Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation (TIDCO), for testing and certification of components and equipment for the defence aviation sector.

Sanjay Chawla, Director General of Military Aviation, told the media in Coimbatore on Tuesday that the facilities will come up at Sulur (Coimbatore), Ulundurpet and Sholavaram, where there are old runways that are not used. These can be used for flight testing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and drones. “Drones and UAVs are the future.” These facilities will help testing and certification of the UAVs and will be available for MSMEs and private companies. The TIDCO will operate these facilities and the DGAQA will issue the certificates.

The TIDCO has allotted land to the DGAQA and it will set up its offices. In Sulur, the facility will be for Maintenance, Repair an Operations (MRO) of aircraft, helicopters and aero engines and it will be opened by the end of this year. At Sholavaram and Ulundurpet, it will be for unmanned systems. The TIDCO has submitted detailed project reports for all three facilities, Mr. Chawla said.

The DGAQA will also have offices in Coimbatore and Tiruchi for capacity assessment and registration of private companies that want to supply to the defence. When registered with the DGAQA, the companies can take part in tenders.

The DGAQA is preparing documents for reciprocal QA arrangements with countries such as the U.S. and Spain. It has such an arrangement with France. The Bharatiya Vayuyan Vidheyak Bill 2024 or the Indian Airworthiness Bill is circulated for inter-ministerial consultations and is likely to be passed soon. If there are wilful defaults by companies that registered companies, they will be liable for penalties when the bill is passed, he said.

Further, the defence industry should move towards industry 4.0 and efforts are on to encourage private industries to go in for more automation, he added.