Indian aerospace startup Sarla Aviation said it plans to build what it describes as the world’s largest dedicated manufacturing facility for electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, as it seeks to establish India as a hub for urban air mobility.
The company said the proposed “giga-facility” will be located in Thimmasamudram village in the Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh and will integrate manufacturing, flight testing, certification, training and maintenance at a single site. Co-founder and chief technology officer Rakesh Gaonkar said the project is intended to cover the full lifecycle of eVTOL aircraft within India for the first time.
See also: Sarla Aviation Partners with Bangalore Airport to Launch India’s First eVTOL Equipped Airport
“This will be the world’s largest dedicated eVTOL and urban air mobility facility,” Gaonkar said, describing the site as a “sky factory” designed to support large-scale production and testing.
Sarla Aviation said the facility will span about 500 acres and require total investment of around 13 billion rupees ($155 million). In the first phase, the company plans to invest 3.3 billion rupees to develop roughly 150 acres, with production targeted to begin in 2029. Once fully operational, the plant is expected to have annual capacity of up to 1,000 aircraft.
See also: Sarla Aviation Secures $10 Million in Series A1 Funding to Develop Electric Air Taxis for India
The site will house production lines for composite structures, powertrains, wire harnesses, landing gear systems and flight control electronics, the company said.
Planned infrastructure also includes what Sarla Aviation says will be India’s largest wind tunnel, a dedicated two-kilometre runway, eVTOL testing pads, research and simulation labs, pilot training centres and maintenance, repair and overhaul facilities.
See also: Indian eVTOL Startup ePlane Secures $14 Million to Develop Air Taxis for 2025 Testing
Founded in 2023 and based in Bengaluru, Sarla Aviation is developing a six-passenger hybrid-electric VTOL aircraft called Shunya. The company said the aircraft can reach speeds of up to 250 km per hour and has a range of up to 800 kilometres using batteries and sustainable aviation fuel, or about 150 kilometres on battery power alone. Sarla Aviation has said it aims to position Shunya as a low-cost flying taxi and plans to deploy it for air ambulance services in major Indian cities including Bengaluru, Delhi, Mumbai and Pune.
