From Aviation International News
Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) of India acquired a 75.1-percent stake each in Australia’s Aerostaff Australia (AA) and Gippsland Aeronautics (GA) last week. Mahindra Systech president and M&M board member Hemant Luthra told AIN, “These acquisitions have been made under subsidiary Mahindra Aerospace with a total commitment of approximately $37.4 million over the next five years. We will retain the existing managements of GA and AA, securing the services of the founders who developed this technology.” The company had earlier invested $10 million in Mahindra Aerospace’s facility in the south India city of Mallur, which it expects to be ready by July. “We will manufacture aircraft for the two- to 20-seat market, both piston-powered and turboprop, and will price them competitively,” Luthra said. Gippsland’s product portfolio includes the GA200C agricultural aircraft, eight-seat GA8 Airvan and an 18-seat turboprop. The portfolio will also include the N5, a five-seat aircraft that is being jointly developed by Mahindra with India’s National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL). The company expects production of aircraft to begin by 2011. Aerostaff Australia is an aircraft component and assemblies manufacturer for large aerospace OEMs.