GRAHAM WARWICK /WASHINGTON DC
Bangalore-based Taneja Aerospace & Aviation (TAAL) has begun assembling two light aircraft for US firm IndUS Aviation, which aims to develop general aviation in India. The Dallas, Texas-based company plans to sell the TAAL-produced Sport E in India and the USA, where the two-seater will be offered under the pending light-sport aircraft category.
The Sport E is the former Thorp T-211 all-metal two-seater, originally designed and certificated in the 1960s. The T-211 was modernised and recertificated in 1990 by Kentucky-based Thorp Aero, but production was halted by the economic downturn. IndUS, formed by Indian-born surgeon Ram Pattisapu, has acquired the rights to the T-211, including tooling and parts.
The company has enough parts in hand to assemble an initial 20-25 aircraft, after which it is planned that TAAL will begin manufacturing parts. "We have shipped kits to India for assembly, to demonstrate what can be done," Pattisapu says. "They will have 10 shipsets by the end or December/early January, with half the aircraft coming back to the USA for the light sport market."
TAAL is scheduled to deliver the first aircraft for the Indian and US markets by 1 March. The company is expected to begin manufacturing new parts in June. IndUS is aiming for Indian certification of the Sport E, with TAAL assembling and delivering aircraft for the domestic market. Wings and fuselages will be shipped to Dallas, where assembly of aircraft for the US market will be completed.
The Sport E is expected to sell in the USA for $65,000-70,000 once the light-sport category is established, a move expected by March next year. IndUS also plans to sell the aircraft as a fast-build kitplane, costing around $25,000, excluding engine and instruments. The company will establish a builder assistance centre at its Dallas plant.
There is also interest from flight schools in Australia and Canada in the fully certificated aircraft, Pattisapu says, but this will require TAAL to obtain a US Federal Aviation Administration production certificate, which will be difficult as there is no airworthiness bilateral between India and the USA.
Production certification will be required if IndUS's proposal to manufacture the Luscombe 11E all-metal four-seater at TAAL is to be viable. Pattisapu plans further talks with Luscombe, which he says does not have a source of parts for its aircraft.
Source: Flight International
