The Ministry of Civil Aviation, in collaboration with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI), organized a curtain raiser event ahead of Wings India 2024 in New Delhi on May 18, 2023.
The event was inaugurated by Shri Jyotiraditya Scindia, the Union Minister of Civil Aviation and Steel, who unveiled the event and promo video and released the Wings India 2024 brochure.
During the event, Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia emphasized the government’s special focus on creating capacity for India’s rapidly growing aviation market by shifting its role from a regulator to a facilitator. He highlighted the government’s strategy of creating capacities, removing bottlenecks, and simplifying processes, which has resulted in the increase of airports from 74 to 148 in the past nine years. He set a target for the industry to have more than 200 airports, heliports, and waterdromes in the next three to four years.
Minister Scindia also expressed his vision for the industry to become the world’s leading aviation market by 2047. He stated that Indian aviation would transform from being the third-largest domestic market, the eighteenth-largest international market, and the seventh-largest domestic and international market to becoming the largest aviation market globally. He emphasized the government’s commitment to creating an international aviation hub in India, facilitated by numerous air services and open skies agreements signed with other countries.
Civil Aviation Secretary Shri Rajiv Bansal highlighted the growth of major airports in the country and the potential to improve international connectivity. He mentioned the expansion plans of airports and the growth in the small aircraft segment, particularly under the UDAN Regional Connectivity Scheme, which aims to connect tier-2 and tier-3 cities to the domestic aviation map. He expressed optimism that India would soon realize its dream of becoming an international aviation hub, citing the large orders placed by Indian aviation companies.
The event was attended by officials from the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Airport Authority of India, representatives from foreign missions, industry representatives, and Mr. Remi Maillard, Managing Director of Airbus.
Wings India 2024 is scheduled to take place from January 18 to 21, 2024, in Hyderabad. It is expected to be Asia’s largest event on Civil Aviation, focusing on Commercial, General, and Business Aviation. The event aims to bring together stakeholders and participants from the aviation industry worldwide to promote collaboration, showcase innovations, and explore business opportunities.