Boeing to hire 800 direct employees in India in the next two years

India will have about 478 million passengers by 2036, which is more than that of Japan and Germany combined.

Boeing, the American plane maker, has plans to hire around 800 direct employees in India over the next two years. The Company sees a huge opportunity in the booming Indian aerospace industry and intends to tap the opportunity by expanding its workforce in the country.

A report by International Air Transport Association (IATA) has revealed that India will be the third-largest aviation market by 2025. As per the report, India will have about 478 million passengers by 2036, which is more than that of Japan (under 225 million) and Germany (just over 200 million) combined.

The plane maker is looking at recruiting new people in job functions ranging from core engineering to frontline factory workers, human resources and top executives.

Boeing has tied up with the National Centre for Aerospace Innovation and Research; the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, the Aerospace Network Research Consortium, and the Indian Institute of Science Bangalore, to help it with its hiring plan.

In India, Boeing has 1200 direct employees and an additional 7000 employees working on its project at its partner firms in the country. It is expected that the Company will have around 1500 direct employees in its India operation by the end of this year, and the partner firms will also increase the number of people working on its projects.

The plane maker considers Bengaluru to be the topmost hub for its hiring plan, as it is home to around 10,000 aerospace engineers.

Boeing’s India vice-president Pratyush Kumar, said “At the end of the day, you need an ecosystem. Bengaluru has a significant advantage. We evaluate very closely where to put a new engineering centre (for instance). There is very tough competition, and frankly, a lot of incentives from other states to go there. But the talent is here (in Bengaluru)”.

The Government of India has asked the Company to train the graduates—such as aircraft maintenance engineers—so that they acquire knowledge on best practices as the aerospace industry requires zero-defect manufacturing. Boeing will create a finishing school to train its customers as per the directions of the Government of India.

With a total employee headcount of 14,4000 globally, Boeing aspires to have 25 per cent of its footprint outside the US, and is therefore, investing in key target markets, including India.