Read Time:2 Minute, 39 Second
Raipur, January 18, 2024: The largest event in the Civil Aviation sector in Asia, the mesmerizing four-day “Wings India 24” extravaganza was started today.
Spanning across commercial, general, and business aviation, the theme for the show is “Connecting India to the World in Amrit Kaal: Setting the Stage for India Civil Aviation @2047”.
Held at Begumpet Airport in Hyderabad, the Global Aviation Summit was inaugurated by Union Minister of Civil Aviation and Steel Jyotiraditya M. Scindia.
Inaugurating the event, Scindia said, “The philosophy of “Vasudhaiva Kutumbkum” truly epitomizes the objectives of civil aviation connecting the world as one family while addressing local aspiration of the ordinary citizens to fly.”
The Union Minister said that Aviation sector is one of the key drivers of economic development and its growth in the emerging economies has been incredible. The aviation economy provides significant economic and social benefits as it facilitates tourism, trade, connectivity, generates economic growth, provides jobs, and provides a lifeline for remote communities and enables a rapid response during unprecedented situations. The Indian aviation sector symbolises 3As: Accessibility, Availability and Affordability.
Talking about India’s civil aviation growth story, the Minister said that India is the shining star in the Civil Aviation landscape.
“Total number of domestic pax rose from 60 million in 2014 to 143 million in 2020 growing at a CAGR of 14.5 per cent and is expected to have crossed the figure of 150 million in 2023. We are clocking more than 4.5 lakh Pax a day on a regular basis with a high of 4.67 lakh domestic passengers recently. In the six years leading to Financial Year 2020 the number of international passengers had also grown at CAGR of 6.1 per cent. Domestic Cargo volumes handled by Indian airports in the 15 years leading to FY 2019 increased by 60 per cent while international cargo volumes increased by 53 per cent.
“Despite tremendous growth in recent times, India still remains highly under-penetrated market. Even if, as per projections, the number of domestic passengers reaches 635 million by FY 2030, India will still be one of the least penetrated of the 20 largest markets,” Scindia said.
“We have already taken unprecedented steps across the spectrum to create capacities, remove bottlenecks and simplify processes and procedures and ensure that in 2047, India has an aviation system that supports a USD 20 Trillion economy.
“We are not only focusing on airplanes and airports, but the development and enhancement of building a holistic airline ecosystem that has strong roots across the value chain. As part of this vision, we have doubled number of Airports in the country in the last 9 years, increasing from 74 in 2014 to 149 now.” he said.
Government of India has so far accorded ‘in-principle’ approval for setting up of 21 Greenfield Airports across the country, out of which 12 Greenfield airports have been operationalized, the Minister added.
