Swades
“A moment. Pratyush KumarWho is boeing company India’s chief minister, who until recently led the U.S. F-15 program, has left his corner office to become a angel investor Suitable for desi aerospace supply chain startups. In addition to investing an undisclosed amount of his own money, Kumar also advises venture capital firms in Europe and North America to invest in suitable startups.
Kumar said in an interview with the Times of India: “The supply chain level of the aerospace industry is tiered. This ecosystem has suffered a considerable impact during the epidemic, and a large amount of demand has disappeared; OEM (original equipment manufacturer) ) cuts production and employees retire.
Then starting in 2022, the travel industry rebounded faster than expected, and suddenly, almost all planes around the world were grounded and airlines didn’t have enough planes to fly people.
Kumar, who has held leadership roles at General Electric and Boeing for more than two decades, said: “During COVID-19, we saw a ‘big resignation’ where a lot of experienced talent actually left. (When demand returns ), many people in the (talent pool) never return to the Western world,” he said.
As a result, there were not enough trained personnel to meet the sudden surge in demand for parts, engines and aircraft.That’s when Kumar saw an opportunity aerospace india These startups are beginning to mature due to the vast pool of talent available in the country. “The Western world is severely short of human resources for high-skilled jobs. The big OEMs can find talent, but not at tiers 2, 3 and beyond. So there is a severe shortage of quality suppliers in the aerospace sector. If you look at Looking at the output from the large OEMs, you can see that they are not even able to meet half of the demand or less,” Kumar said.
“At this point, I started thinking about how to mitigate this problem. Where do you go? Which friendly countries do you have to go to. India is on the short list, with rich experience and a huge talent pool.”
During this “unique moment,” he thought about leaving Boeing and did so last year. Since then, he has backed startups such as India’s Jeh Aerospace and is in talks with several others, advising venture capital firms to do the same and shortlist the right companies.
“I know the 200-plus suppliers[in India]very well. They have really good opportunities and some really world-class talent. If you bring them together, you can create sustainable long-term successful businesses. That’s it.” The demand for aerospace products is huge and the supply chain will remain constrained, so as long as they (Indian supply chain industry) can maintain two things – quality and delivery – the demand for these products is unlimited . “explain.
When asked about the scale of investment in India, Kumar simply said that he was “investing some of his personal savings in some companies. I am also advising some large venture capital companies to find suitable companies to support.”
“I am in touch with at least 50 different Indian companies in this space. I will not commit investment to all 50 companies. In some companies I will do so, in some companies I will refer to venture capital companies,” He said.
“Most Indian startups don’t have access to global markets. I can bridge that gap. Connecting the Western aerospace industry with the Indian startup scene, that’s what I’m trying to do,” VP Kumar said last year After leaving aerospace, he worked on the Boeing F-15 program. He is currently an angel investor in aerospace and defense startups such as Jeh Aerospace and Conforming Inc, and is an advisor to leading venture capital firm General Catalyst.
