Thales has announced the appointment of Ankur Kanaglekar as Vice President for India, effective September 10, 2025.
In his new role, Kanaglekar will lead Thales’ strategy and operations in India, focusing on strengthening industrial collaboration, boosting local innovation and engineering capabilities, and delivering advanced solutions across defence, aerospace, and cyber and digital markets.
With more than 25 years of experience in aerospace, defence, and consulting, Kanaglekar brings deep expertise in driving strategic growth, forging partnerships, and managing high-impact initiatives. Before joining Thales, he spent 14 years at Boeing in India, most recently serving as Executive Director. During his tenure, he spearheaded global co-development and co-production programmes for defence platforms, led major sales campaigns, and drove strategic growth initiatives. His work in building partnerships with Indian public and private sector organisations supported the Make in India initiative and played a key role in advancing defence localisation.
Prior to Boeing, Kanaglekar was an Engagement Manager at PRTM Management Consulting, now part of PwC, where he advised Fortune 500 companies on mergers, acquisitions, operations, and go-to-market strategies across aerospace, automotive, and industrial sectors.
“I am pleased to welcome Ankur Kanaglekar to Thales. With his proven leadership and deep understanding of the Indian market, we aim to further enhance our support of the country’s ambitious self-reliance objectives, co-develop cutting-edge solutions, and nurture local talent. We remain deeply committed to the Aatmanirbhar Bharat vision and to fostering enduring partnerships across the ecosystem,” said Pascale Sourisse, President and CEO, Thales International.
“India is at the heart of Thales’ global strategy, and I am truly honoured to have this opportunity to lead our operations at such a pivotal time. I look forward to working closely with our partners, teams, and stakeholders to accelerate growth, deepen localisation, and make a meaningful contribution to nation building, supporting India’s technological ambitions and self-reliance journey,” said Kanaglekar.
Kanaglekar holds a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Pune University, a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Cincinnati, USA, and a Master of Business Administration from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.
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