India to become a major player in aviation in coming decades: Civil Aviation Minister Scindia

The Minister in his remarks pointed out that despite the high season being over by now, the country is witnessing daily passenger traffic of 4.2-4.4 lakh, suggesting that demand is robust and the next high season starting in October could break previous records.

New Delhi: Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Monday said that India in the coming decades will be seen as a major player in the aviation market as it has survived the turbulent times and is now portraying a massive V shape recovery. Speaking at a summit organized by aviation consultancy CAPA in New Delhi, the Union Minister lauded the aviation sector and said that the domestic aviation sector is now seeing new heights, particularly in the domain of passenger traffic.

The Minister in his remarks pointed out that despite the high season being over by now, the country is witnessing daily passenger traffic of 4.2-4.4 lakh, suggesting that demand is robust and the next high season starting in October could break previous records. The Union Minister in his remarks also noted, “Four years ago, we had a fleet of 400 planes. Now it is upwards of 700," adding that "India’s passenger aircraft fleet is likely to be around 2,000 planes in five to seven years."

"In 2013-14, a country (India) that had only 14 million domestic passengers today has 144 million domestic passengers - 10 times growth in 10 years," he said.

Speaking about the Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik (UDAN) program, he pointed out that the number of passengers in the last six years has almost doubled. "Through the UDAN program, we have today built 74 airports. We still have 26 airports to be built to complete the target of 100," Scindia said, adding the center has planned to increase last-mile connectivity by introducing the small aircraft scheme.

Speaking about the manufacturing of aerospace products, Scindia in his remarks highlighted that "it is time for India to look at the manufacturing of aerospace products as he highlighted the growth potential of the country's aviation sector". He also said domestic airlines are together projected to have a fleet of around 2,000 planes in the next five to seven years and added that the "time is right for manufacturing to take off in India".