Indian Business Aviation Expo - Call for Unity

The three-day Indian Business Aviation Expo 2010 organised in New Delhi called for unity and a fresh start to drive the government’s attention towards the business aviation sector

The first ever Indian Business Aviation Expo 2010 was organised from February 24 to 26, 2010, in New Delhi. Hosted by MIU events, a UK-based organisation specialising in aviation conferences and exhibitions and the Exhibitions India Group, a leading trade promotion organisation, the three day forum hosted a variety of national and international speakers to shed light on business aviation and matters related to it. “Corporate aviation is a significant business tool to enable quicker access to corporate customers,” said Prem Behl, Chairman, Exhibitions India Group during his opening remarks. The importance of business aviation and its lack of proper growth despite India’s economy growing rapidly drew the attention of the panel speakers and the audience. “Without the cooperation of the governing bodies, India’s business aviation and to some extent civil aviation will not be able to reach its true potential or can even be compared with other leading economies,” they said.

The panelist felt that while the civil aviation industry is expected to grow in India over the next decade, business aviation also has its own growth potential. “Business aviation gets a stepchild treatment as compared to civil aviation,” said Captain Karan Singh, Vice President, Business Aviation Association of India (BAAI). From basic issues such as policy changes and fuel tax to infrastructure and regulations, business aviation in India is demanding the attention of the Indian government. With several expositions and trade fairs being organised to educate the public on business aviation, a movement seems to have started. “The sector needs more coordination from all the stakeholders to take advantage of the enormous growth potential that the Indian market has,” said Kapil Kaul, CEO, Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA).