Mumbai, 30^th August, 2018: Mahindra Aerospace Private Limited [MAPL] has signed Botswana’s Major Blue Air Ltd as its first worldwide customer for its Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) certified 10-seater turboprop aircraft, the Airvan 10. This is to further strengthen the importance MAPL assigns to Botswana - a very important and successful Mahindra Aerospace -Airvan 8 market

To experience the wide and panoramic beauty of Botswana or travel inland, the Airvan is the most suitable aircraft for Botswana’s tourism industry and is the Airvan’s largest single airport operation.

Commenting on Mahindra Aerospace’s first Airvan 10 customer, Mr. SP Shukla, Group President- Aerospace, Defence and Steel, Mahindra Group and Chairman- Mahindra Aerospace said, “Tourism companies in Botswana reposed their faith in Mahindra Group when they introduced Airvan 8 in their aircraft fleets. Eventually Airvan proved to be the most suitable aircraft for their tourism operations & scenic flights across the country. We are delighted that Maun in Botswana is among Airvan’s top markets. It is a matter of immense pride to see the first Airvan 10 being introduced in this important market.”

Mr. Arvind Mehra, Executive Director & CEO, Mahindra Aerospace said, “Over last few years, we have enhanced our focus and attention to this very important market. With increasing traffic and 2018 being one of the highest in terms of tourism growth, this market needed a bigger and turbine aircraft. I compliment Major Blue for becoming the first customer of Airvan 10 which very well complements the existing flying fleet of Airvan 8. We look forward to many more of both Airvan 8 and Airvan 10 flying.”

Airvan 10 is an ideal upgrade for most operators who need added seating capacity and looking for more cost effective solution against other alternatives. Mahindra Aerospace, therefore, wanted to bring its first Airvan 10 to a city/country which connects well with the Airvan family. Major Blue Air, having experienced a wonderful return on its existing Airvan fleet wanted to upgrade and chose to be the first worldwide customer of Airvan 10.

Botswana, a landlocked country in Southern Africa, has a landscape defined by the Kalahari Desert and the Okavango Delta, which becomes a lush animal habitat during the seasonal floods. The massive Central Kalahari Game Reserve, with its fossilized river valleys and undulating grasslands, is home to numerous wild animals. The large scenic windows of AIrvan 8 and Airvan 10 present a wonderful opportunity to tourists to experience nature at its best.

About Mahindra Aerospace

Mahindra Aerospace has led the Mahindra Group’s foray into utility aircraft and aerostructure manufacturing. Its utility aircraft business, based in Australia, currently produces the Airvan 8, the most capable, rugged and versatile utility aircraft in its class. Certified in many countries, over 240 are in service. Mahindra Aerospace has also developed a next-gen 10-seat turboprop, the Airvan 10, which has been Type Certified in six countries including USA and Australia. Mahindra Aerospace also operates an aerostructures manufacturing business, based at Bengaluru, which produces aircraft parts, components & sub-assemblies for supply directly to global OEMs and their leading suppliers.

About Mahindra

The Mahindra Group is a USD 20.7 billion federation of companies that enables people to rise through innovative mobility solutions, driving rural prosperity, enhancing urban living, nurturing new businesses and fostering communities. It enjoys a leadership position in utility vehicles, information technology, financial services and vacation ownership in India and is the world’s largest tractor company, by volume. It also enjoys a strong presence in agribusiness, aerospace, commercial vehicles, components, defense, logistics, real estate, renewable energy, speedboats and steel, amongst other businesses. Headquartered in India, Mahindra employs over 2,400,000 people across 100 countries.

Learn more about Mahindra on www.mahindra.com / Twitter and Facebook: @MahindraRise

For further enquiries please contact:

Mahindra Aerospace:
Shubhada Dharwadkar,
Group Communications,
Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd
Phone: +91 22 2490 1441
Email: [email protected]