Hindustan Aeronautics Limited is an Indian public sector aerospace and defence company. Headquartered in Bengaluru, it is involved in the designing, manufacturing and overhaul of combat aircraft, helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles, jet and turbine engines, avionics, and other hardware. HAL operates 11 dedicated research and development centres and 21 manufacturing divisions distributed across four production units. The company is majority-owned by the Indian government, and managed by a board of directors appointed by the Indian president through the Ministry of Defence. Established on 23 December 1940 by Walchand Hirachand as Hindustan Aircraft Limited, the company is one of the oldest and largest aerospace and defence manufacturers in the world. The company began manufacturing aircraft in 1942 with licensed production of Harlow PC-5, Curtiss P-36 Hawk, and Vultee A-31 Vengeance for the Indian Air Force. The company started manufacturing jet engines in 1957 with the licensed production of Bristol Siddeley Orpheus engines. It was established as Hindustan Aeronautics Limited on 1 October 1964. Wikipedia