Bengaluru: Ravi K has taken over as the Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of defense PSU Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), becoming the 22nd CMD of the company. He replaces DK Sunil, who retired on April 30. Ravi was previously Director (Operations) at HAL, where he was involved in strategic planning.

He has over 30 years of experience in aerospace and defence, manufacturing and electronics. “During his previous roles – including Executive Director and General Manager of LCA Tejas Division – he was associated with several major contracts, including the supply of 180 LCA Tejas aircraft to the Indian Air Force and 156 LCH Prachanda helicopters to the Indian Army and Air Force,” HAL said in a statement. He has also been given credit for working towards the governance of the LCA, it said.

The Tejas fleet and indigenous content in the program is increasing in the Indian Air Force. “During his tenure HAL expanded into civil manufacturing and maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) segment. He also oversaw the outsourcing of fuselage assembly to private sector partners to expand production capacity,” HAL said.

Ravi is a Mechanical Engineering graduate from Malnad College of Engineering, Karnataka, and an alumnus of IIM Ahmedabad and IAS, Toulouse, France. He also serves as a Nominee Director on the Board of Multi-Role Transport Aircraft Limited. Upon assuming charge, he said his focus will be on making HAL competitive in the global aerospace and defense market with an emphasis on innovation, AI adoption and operational efficiency.