India Aviation takes off at Begumpet Airport

Hyderabad, March 14 (INN): 'India Aviation-2012', the 3rd edition of the premier international exhibition and conference on civil aviation was inaugurated by the Minister for Civil Aviation Ch Ajit Singh at Begumpet Airport here on Wednesday.

Aiming to showcase and share with the stakeholders growth opportunities in Indian aviation sector, the five day event would bring together senior Government officials, aviation business leaders, airlines, airport operators and regulators, air navigation service providers, aircraft component manufacturers and technology providers.

The country pavilions from UK, France, USA, Russia, Belgium, New Zealand, Canada and several other countries and leading business and commercial aircraft manufacturers are on display.

The event will witness over 25 air crafts for static and flying display at the show.

Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas S Jaipal Reddy, Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy, Civil Aviation Secretary Dr Nasim Zaidi, Postal Services Board member Kamaleshwar Prasad and FICCI President R V Kanoria participated in the inaugural.

Reiterating the government's commitment towards the development of the aviation sector despite the challenges faced due to rising fuel costs, fierce competition, infrastructure bottlenecks, Ajit Singh said that several initiatives have been taken in setting up new regulatory framework.

He said that the government was planning to bring in Indian Navigation System Master Plan which includes significant investment in modernization of Communication Navigation Surveillance (CNS), Air Traffic Managements and Meteorological Equipment, Enhancing Manpower and Training Infrastructure and harmonization with global initiatives and regional air navigation plans.

India's GPS aided Geo augmented Navigation system known as GAGAN Developed by AAI with the support of ISRO is also likely to be rolled out by 2013, he added.

Ajit Singh said that the prospects of India as potential global hub for manufacturing and MRO business were very bright due to its strong engineering workforce, R&D expertise and its strategic location.

He informed that an MRO facility in partnership with Malaysian Aerospace Engineering, a subsidiary of Malaysian Airlines System, has been set up at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport at Hyderabad.

Air India is also building an MRO facility with Boeing in Nagpur. Air India will also set up an MRO subsidiary soon. Airbus is also expected to make investment in MRO.

Ch. Ajit Singh said that the Civil Aviation Ministry is working upon a framework to modernise regulatory work for aerospace sector including its promotion. Bilateral Aviation Safety Agreement (BASA) with FAA, USA would boost export of aeronautic products.

The Minister informed that a full-fledged aviation university would be set up to bridge the shortage of skilled personnel in aviation sector. This project would enhance the supply of trained pilots and other skilled personnel in aviation sector.

Saying that the government was keen to set up world class training and education infrastructure in the country, he pointed out that the CAE Global Flying Training Institute at Gondia in Maharashtra and CAE Simulator Training Facilities at Bangalore were excellent examples of such endeavors.

Petroleum Minister Jaipal Reddy and the Chief Minister highlighted the increasing competition in the aviation sector has brought the services within the reach of people at large. They also hoped that affordable air services will enable Indian Economy to achieve the objective of inclusive growth.