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By Nivedita Bhattacharjee

BENGALURU, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Airbus, Collins

Aerospace, Pratt & Whitney, and Rolls-Royce are expanding

parts sourcing from India, driving growth in the country's

emerging aerospace sector and pushing local firms to elevate

their games, industry insiders say.

Bengaluru-based Hical Technologies and JJG Aero are among

those riding the wave. Hical, a supplier to Raytheon Technology

and Boeing ( BA ) among others, aims to double revenue to 5 billion

rupees ($57.57 million) from its aerospace division in three

years, said Yashas Jaiveer Shashikiran, joint managing director.

JJG Aero, also in Bengaluru's industrial hub, took 12 years

to hit $2 million in revenue but soared to $20 million in the

last six, said CEO Anuj Jhunjhunwala.

The growth is part of an Asia-Pacific aerospace surge, with

2024 revenue projected to be 54% above 2019 levels, while North

America and Europe remain 3% and 4% lower, according to

Accenture Research.

"Earlier, we were chasing customers. Now, they are equally

interested in evaluating Indian machine shops," Jhunjhunwala

said, adding that contracts were being signed more quickly and

onboarding processes being done much faster than ever before.

The companies produce parts for landing gear, wings,

fuselage, electrical switches and motion control systems

essential for flight safety and performance.

Leading Western plane and engine manufacturers, whose

output has been constrained by strikes, production caps, and

parts and labour shortages since the pandemic, say they want to

source more from India to meet rising demand for air travel.

"India is the best solution to supply chain challenges,"

Huw Morgan, senior vice president for aerospace procurement at

Rolls-Royce, said last week at an industry event.

"Our engine volumes are growing at around 20% and the

traditional supply chains are just not able to support it,"

Morgan said. "India is ... the best cost market."

The British company plans to double sourcing from India

within five years.

The country is among the biggest aircraft buyers in the

world, yet accounts for only 1% of the global supply chain

market, according to the recently formed Aerospace India

Association.

"Post-Covid, the global aerospace industry has reached an

inflection point. While this shift began in 2020, aerospace is a

slow-moving industry - it takes time for changes to

materialise," said Aravind Melligeri of supplier Aequs.

MORE PLANES, MORE PARTS

India, the world's third-largest domestic aviation market by

seats, is also among the fastest-growing, driving demand for

maintenance services and parts.

Massive aircraft orders from IndiGo and Air India

are fuelling growth across the aviation ecosystem, Air India CEO

Campbell Wilson told Reuters.

Although Indian firms have long supplied the $180 billion

global aerospace industry, they are now moving beyond basic

manufacturing to higher-value work such as design, engineering,

and system integration.

Airbus in 2024 awarded its second aircraft door contract

within a year to Indian suppliers.

"India is contributing more than 1 billion euros currently

in the overall Airbus supply chain and we expect to double that.

Every commercial aircraft of Airbus today has some part or

component that is made in India," said Michel Narchi, head Of

international operations at Airbus said.

INDUSTRY EFFORTS

India's civil aviation ministry held a meeting last week

with industry leaders about boosting component manufacturing,

said AIA Director General Srinivasan Dwarakanath. The

association represents both Indian and global firms.

He said a key step towards real value addition would be the

local sourcing of raw materials such as aluminium, steel, and

titanium, eventually leading to certification of designs made by

Indian suppliers.

The AIA estimates that India's aerospace industry will

capture 10% of the global supply chain market within a decade,

with the global market projected to reach $250 billion annually

by 2033.

"India also had the initial challenges of being physically

farther away from the main markets of the U.S. and Europe.

Engineering approvals, qualification timings, raw material

sourcing - it took some time to build the ecosystem, but now

India is all set," said Hical's Yashas Jaiveer.