Thales has inaugurated an inflight entertainment and services lab at its engineering competence center in Bengaluru. The new facility expands Thales’ footprint in the subcontinent’s civil aviation sector and continues India’s trend of developing localized aerospace and defense capabilities.
Positioned as a hub for the design, development and testing of next-generation inflight entertainment (IFE) systems, the lab is equipped to serve both Indian carriers and global airline customers. The facility replicates a real aircraft cabin environment, enabling comprehensive software and hardware testing, from secured aircraft data deployment to rigorous hardware inspections. Thales says this will enable the creation of more reliable, immersive and technologically advanced entertainment systems tailored for modern passenger expectations.
The June 6 inauguration ceremony brought together key stakeholders from the Indo-French aerospace ecosystem, including representatives from Air India, the Indo-French Chamber of Commerce & Industry and senior Indian government ministers.
Olivier Flous, Thales’ senior vice president of engineering and digital transformation, highlighted the strategic significance of the new lab, saying that it represents a clear commitment to building future-ready aviation technologies in India that can serve global markets.
“This initiative is a key milestone in improving both the passenger experience and operational efficiency for airlines. It also enables us to harness India’s vast engineering talent to build a robust civil aviation ecosystem that is both local and globally competitive,” he said.
The lab will be located within Thales’ Bengaluru engineering competence center, which also houses high-level engineering functions to support air traffic management, cockpit avionics, satellite navigation, cybersecurity and digital identity systems. It is also expected to drive job creation and skill development in India’s tech and aerospace sectors, facilitating upskilling of engineers in areas such as embedded systems, human-machine interaction and secure data transmission.
In April, Thales opened a new avionics MRO facility near Indira Gandhi International Airport in Gurugram. The facility will provide services such as maintenance and repair of avionics components.
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