C Shivakumar @ CHENNAI:
Tamil Nadu has sharpened its bid to emerge as a strategic hub in India’s next-generation aerospace and defence architecture, leveraging the success of indigenous airborne surveillance platforms such as the Netra airborne early warning system developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation’s Centre for Airborne Systems (CABS) to press for a larger share of the country’s high-value defence research and development infrastructure.
Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay on Wednesday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and pressed for the establishment of CABS in Tamil Nadu, as the state seeks a bigger role in India’s aerospace and defence manufacturing ecosystem.
During the meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office in New Delhi, Vijay said discussions had been under way for the past few years with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on setting up the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) Design and Development Centre and the Centre for Airborne Systems in Tamil Nadu. He specifically urged the Centre to locate the CABS facility in the state.
The renewed lobbying comes after key infrastructure linked to India’s proposed fifth-generation Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) programme was steered towards Andhra Pradesh, despite Tamil Nadu’s long-standing engagement with DRDO.
The latest push centres on the proposed expansion of CABS, the DRDO laboratory that serves as the lead integration agency for India’s airborne surveillance and electronic warfare systems, including the indigenous Netra airborne early warning and control aircraft.
Sources said Tamil Nadu is attempting to leverage its manufacturing base, electronics ecosystem and aviation infrastructure around Hosur and Chennai to attract future aerospace programmes linked to airborne surveillance, advanced radar systems and combat aircraft development.
The indigenous Netra Mk1 platform — developed by CABS, a DRDO lab for the Indian Air Force — has emerged as one of India’s most significant domestically developed airborne surveillance systems. Mounted on a Brazilian Embraer ERJ-145 jet, the aircraft functions as a flying command-and-control centre capable of tracking hostile aircraft, coordinating strike missions and enhancing battlefield awareness in real time.
The aircraft uses an Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar mounted above the fuselage, giving it wide-area aerial surveillance capability. Sources said the platform can detect targets at ranges exceeding 250 km, while upgraded variants under development are expected to significantly enhance both range and coverage.
The push also comes as CABS plans to expand beyond its existing limited infrastructure, which currently caters to three aircraft, to support six Netra Mk1A and six Netra Mk2 aircraft. Tamil Nadu has been lobbying DRDO for several years to establish the expanded CABS facility in Hosur, according to official sources.
"Such a project would not only strengthen India’s air defence capability but also transform Tamil Nadu’s aerospace and defence ecosystem by generating high-technology jobs and deepening local manufacturing capability. They say Hosur could evolve into a defence and aviation hub similar to Bengaluru and Hyderabad, while also strengthening the supply chain for aerospace electronics, avionics and systems integration. Sources added that a single Netra Mk1 aircraft costs roughly ₹2,000 crore to build, underlining the scale of economic activity associated with the programme," sources said.
The Netra Mk1A is expected to substantially increase surveillance range, while the larger Netra Mk2 — planned on an Airbus A321 platform — aims to provide near-360-degree coverage with detection capability extending beyond 500 km. Tamil Nadu officials argue that Hosur is well positioned to host future aerospace and defence expansion because of its proximity to Bengaluru’s aerospace cluster, its existing electronics manufacturing base and its earlier association with DRDO flight-testing activity. The region previously hosted unmanned aerial vehicle test operations linked to DRDO’s Rustom programme.
Tamil Nadu has sharpened its bid to emerge as a strategic hub in India’s next-generation aerospace and defence architecture, leveraging the success of indigenous airborne surveillance platforms such as the Netra airborne early warning system developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation’s Centre for Airborne Systems (CABS) to press for a larger share of the country’s high-value defence research and development infrastructure.
Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay on Wednesday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and pressed for the establishment of CABS in Tamil Nadu, as the state seeks a bigger role in India’s aerospace and defence manufacturing ecosystem.
During the meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office in New Delhi, Vijay said discussions had been under way for the past few years with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on setting up the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) Design and Development Centre and the Centre for Airborne Systems in Tamil Nadu. He specifically urged the Centre to locate the CABS facility in the state.
The renewed lobbying comes after key infrastructure linked to India’s proposed fifth-generation Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) programme was steered towards Andhra Pradesh, despite Tamil Nadu’s long-standing engagement with DRDO.
The latest push centres on the proposed expansion of CABS, the DRDO laboratory that serves as the lead integration agency for India’s airborne surveillance and electronic warfare systems, including the indigenous Netra airborne early warning and control aircraft.
Sources said Tamil Nadu is attempting to leverage its manufacturing base, electronics ecosystem and aviation infrastructure around Hosur and Chennai to attract future aerospace programmes linked to airborne surveillance, advanced radar systems and combat aircraft development.
The indigenous Netra Mk1 platform — developed by CABS, a DRDO lab for the Indian Air Force — has emerged as one of India’s most significant domestically developed airborne surveillance systems. Mounted on a Brazilian Embraer ERJ-145 jet, the aircraft functions as a flying command-and-control centre capable of tracking hostile aircraft, coordinating strike missions and enhancing battlefield awareness in real time.
The aircraft uses an Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar mounted above the fuselage, giving it wide-area aerial surveillance capability. Sources said the platform can detect targets at ranges exceeding 250 km, while upgraded variants under development are expected to significantly enhance both range and coverage.
The push also comes as CABS plans to expand beyond its existing limited infrastructure, which currently caters to three aircraft, to support six Netra Mk1A and six Netra Mk2 aircraft. Tamil Nadu has been lobbying DRDO for several years to establish the expanded CABS facility in Hosur, according to official sources.
"Such a project would not only strengthen India’s air defence capability but also transform Tamil Nadu’s aerospace and defence ecosystem by generating high-technology jobs and deepening local manufacturing capability. They say Hosur could evolve into a defence and aviation hub similar to Bengaluru and Hyderabad, while also strengthening the supply chain for aerospace electronics, avionics and systems integration. Sources added that a single Netra Mk1 aircraft costs roughly ₹2,000 crore to build, underlining the scale of economic activity associated with the programme," sources said.
The Netra Mk1A is expected to substantially increase surveillance range, while the larger Netra Mk2 — planned on an Airbus A321 platform — aims to provide near-360-degree coverage with detection capability extending beyond 500 km. Tamil Nadu officials argue that Hosur is well positioned to host future aerospace and defence expansion because of its proximity to Bengaluru’s aerospace cluster, its existing electronics manufacturing base and its earlier association with DRDO flight-testing activity. The region previously hosted unmanned aerial vehicle test operations linked to DRDO’s Rustom programme.
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