Embraer and Mahindra Group have selected Nagpur, an emerging aerospace and defense hub in central India, as the location for a potential C-390 Millennium final assembly line if the aircraft is chosen by the Indian Air Force.
The companies are working with the government of Maharashtra, which has already allocated land for the proposed facility. No plant will be built unless India selects the C-390 and places an order under the Medium Transport Aircraft (MTA) program.
Nagpur is about 680 km (420 miles) east of Mumbai, Maharashtra’s capital, and occupies a strategic position near the geographical center of India. The city has developed a significant aerospace cluster around its airport over the past two decades.
Much of that activity is concentrated at MIHAN, the Multi-modal International Cargo Hub and Airport at Nagpur. The project combines the airport with a special economic zone of about 1,236 hectares intended to attract logistics, manufacturing and technology companies, with aerospace among its targeted industries.
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The area already hosts aircraft manufacturing and maintenance operations. Boeing originally developed a large maintenance, repair and overhaul facility in Nagpur that was later transferred to Air India and is now operated by AI Engineering Services. The site can accommodate widebody aircraft and performs heavy maintenance work.
AAR and Indamer also established an MRO facility at MIHAN for commercial aircraft, while Dassault Aviation and Reliance operate Dassault Reliance Aerospace Limited in the same industrial area.
Dassault Reliance began operations in Nagpur in 2017 and produces aerostructures and components associated with Dassault aircraft, including the Falcon business jet family. The project was established as part of an effort to develop aerospace manufacturing capabilities in India.
Maharashtra has increasingly promoted Nagpur as an aerospace and defense manufacturing center. Earlier this year, state officials described plans to expand the city’s role in defense aviation manufacturing, while the development of Nagpur airport has also been linked to ambitions for a larger aviation, cargo and MRO cluster.
New step for Mahindra aerospace operations
The proposed C-390 plant would also differ substantially from Mahindra’s existing aerospace manufacturing activities.
Mahindra Aerostructures currently operates its main production facility at Narasapura, near Bengaluru in southern India. It manufactures aerostructures and assemblies for international aircraft manufacturers, with work that includes components for Airbus and Boeing programs.
A C-390 facility in Nagpur would introduce final aircraft assembly, systems integration and manufacturing engineering capabilities. Embraer and Mahindra also intend to develop an Indian supply chain around the aircraft and establish training, aftermarket and lifecycle support operations.
The companies have not disclosed the size, investment or production capacity of the proposed Nagpur plant.
Competition for Indian transport aircraft
Embraer and Mahindra signed an initial memorandum of understanding in February 2024 to pursue the Indian Air Force requirement and expanded their partnership through a strategic cooperation agreement in October 2025.
The agreement covers local manufacturing, final assembly, supply chain development and maintenance activities. In February 2026, the companies also announced plans to establish C-390 maintenance capability in India if the aircraft is selected.
The MTA program is expected to replace part of the Indian Air Force’s older transport fleet with an aircraft in the 18- to 30-tonne payload category. The requirement has attracted competing proposals, including the Lockheed Martin C-130J, backed in India by Tata Advanced Systems.
The C-390 can carry up to 26 tonnes and is already operated or ordered by customers in Europe, Asia and the Americas. The twin-engine jet can perform cargo and troop transport, airdrop, medical evacuation, search and rescue and other missions.
