New Delhi: As the week long world’s largest air show and aerospace-industry exhibition in the world, the Paris Air Show, got underway from June 19 at Paris–Le Bourget Airport in France, it was India’s day on the second day on June 20 as Air India inked a $70 billion purchase agreements for 470 aircraft order from Airbus and Boeing.
However, it was surpassed by Air India’s rival IndiGo’s order for 500 Airbus narrow body jets.
Efforts by Indian airlines to keep pace with the world’s fastest-growing aviation market, serving the largest population, have sent industry records tumbling even though manufacturers are struggling to meet output goals due to supply chain snags.
These record orders by India’s top two carriers show the country’s untapped potential for air travel and its rise as an aviation superpower, but recent airline failures and rows over regulations suggest progress may not be smooth.
Indian budget airline IndiGo announced at the Paris Air Show the biggest-ever plane order by number of aircraft with a deal for 500 Airbus narrowbody jets.
With a total of almost 1,000 jet orders between them, IndiGo and Air India are betting an economic boom and growing middle class will spur demand for domestic air travel, and new jets will help them grab a bigger share of international traffic.
The number of domestic air passengers in India is expected to surge to 700 million by 2030, up from 144 million in 2019, with international air travellers up to 160 million from 70 million in 2019, according to aviation consultancy CAPA India.
The number of airports in India is also set to climb to 200 over the next five years from 150 today, as the government looks to connect the country’s remotest areas by air.
“It is time to seize the skies,” said civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, adding the new planes would help Indian airlines expand at home and across continents.
IndiGo, which operates a fleet of 300 planes, is yet to take delivery of some 500 jets from previous orders with Airbus. This puts the total deliveries by plane makers to Indian carriers at more than 1,500 over the next decade and beyond — double India’s existing fleet of 700 planes across all airlines.
That makes India a key market for plane makers, especially Airbus which has bagged the bulk of new orders, outdoing US rival Boeing, and engine manufacturers whose wares will be put to test.
The recent failure of Go First, the third Indian airline to go under in 11 years, has exposed a gap in local regulations over the protection of rights of foreign leasing firms that finance many large plane deals. Indian budget carrier SpiceJet is also facing the ire of lessors over unpaid dues.
Leasing companies warn that restrictions on repossessing their assets in case of defaults will drive up costs for all Indian airlines — even for IndiGo and Air India.
“There needs to be a huge regulatory revamp to protect lessors’ interests. It will eventually help Indian airlines by lowering risk and moderating lease rental costs,” said Aviation analyst Ameya Joshi.
India is a critical market for lessors. Sale-and-leaseback deals — where airlines sell planes to lessors to free up capital and then rent them back — accounted for 75 per cent of plane deliveries in India from 2018 to 2022, compared with a global average of 35 per cent, data from aviation analytics firm Cirium shows. This is causing concerns among some leasing companies that fear being too exposed to a market fraught with risks.
Some analysts also say that the airlines could be over-ordering jets in pursuit of the same passengers.
The bullish outlooks from IndiGo and Air India, which together control about 80 per cent of the domestic market, suggest both are starting to benefit from their scale compared to rivals.
“India is moving towards becoming a stable market where growth will not be as high but airlines will be profitable and connectivity will be better despite higher fares,” he said.
The aero show organized by the French aerospace industry’s primary representative body, the Groupement des Industries Françaises Aéronautiques et Spatiales (GIFAS) is the largest air show and aerospace-industry exhibition event in the world, measured by number of exhibitors and size of exhibit space, followed by UK’s Farnborough Air Show, Dubai Air Show and Singapore Air show.
The show was first held in 1909, and since then is held every odd year from 1949 to 2019, when the 53rd Air Show attracted 2,453 exhibitors from 49 countries and occupied more than 125,000 square meters. The 2021 show was cancelled due to the COVID pandemic and resumed this year.
The show provides a platform for the aviation industry to demonstrate their military and civilian aircraft, and is attended by many military forces and the major aircraft manufacturers, often announcing major aircraft sales. It starts with four professional days and is then opened to the general public followed from Friday to Sunday. The format is similar to Farnborough and the ILA Berlin Air Show, both staged in even years.
Several countries including Vietnam and Madagascar expressed interest in various platforms made by defence public sector undertaking (DPSU) Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
According to company officials, defence delegations from Madagascar and Vietnam held discussions in the indigenous platforms including the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) `Tejas’, Light Combat Helicopter `Prachand’ and HTT 40. “Almost 20 prospective countries’ delegations were specifically invited to explore potential exports from the state owned HAL,” they added.
In a stunning display of India’s technological prowess, the HAL Chalet with the theme of “Indigenized Platforms and Future Projects of HAL” attracted attention as the models of various platforms were displayed. Also on display were fixed-wing platforms such as the Trainer HTT40 and Maritime Do228 along with the LCA Tejas Fighter.
The HAL Chalet became a testament to India’s capabilities, proudly exhibiting its range of rotor wing platforms, including the ALH Dhruv, ALH MR, LCH Prachand, ALH WSI, and LUH. These home grown creations were crafted in India but designed to make a significant impact worldwide.
While the defence delegations engaged in discussions, meetings with business partners were also strategically scheduled to explore future projects. These interactions served as catalysts for innovative collaborations and presented HAL with promising business opportunities.
With its impressive showcase, the HAL Chalet captured the attention, shining a spotlight on India’s home grown military platforms and its ambitions for the future. It exemplified India’s determination to forge international partnerships and attract foreign armed forces to explore the technologically advanced solutions offered by HAL.
– The writer is a senior journalist and media consultant. The views expressed are of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of Raksha Anirveda.
