Mahindra Aerospace will build GA8 Airvans in India within the next two years.
The announcement was made last Monday by Mahindra Systech President Hemant Luthra during the inauguration of a new manufacturing plant in India.
"You can expect that within a time-frame of two years, we will have a full-fledged eight-seater aircraft being manufactured in India," he said, fuelling speculation that production of the Airvan would move from Latrobe Regional Airport.
However, the new plant is expected to add manufacturing capacity rather than replace Australian production.
Latrobe City Council yesterday released a statement to quell fears about the impact on GippsAero.
“It’s business as usual," said Latrobe City Council CEO Paul Buckley, "and the additional capacity in India will be a boost to Mahindra.
"We have worked hard to ensure the GippsAero facility at the Latrobe Regional Airport is capable of increasing production, so that it now has the ability to double the current output.
"Additionally, the relocation of Aerostaff from Port Melbourne to Latrobe Regional Airport further reinforces the commitment of GippsAero to continue with manufacturing at this site.
"In fact, the move of Aerostaff to Latrobe City will bring with it a flexibility to produce components for other customers in the industry, and hence a corresponding increase in job numbers."
Recent grants totalling $6.24 million have been made to both the airport and the plant occupied by GippsAero or order to increase capacity for the GA8 and smooth the path to production for the GA10 and GA18 Nomad.
A further announcement is expected from Mahindra/GippsAero on Wednesday.