Centre working on plan to manufacture aircraft in India

Mumbai: The Modi government is working on a strategy for manufacturing domestic aircraft and is also looking to promote aircraft financing from within the country, said civil aviation minister Suresh Prabhu, who also highlighted the importance of getting aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) work done from within India. "We will soon roll out a road map for manufacturing of aircraft in India," Prabhu told reporters at the Global Aviation Summit 2019.

India has the world's fastest-growing domestic aviation market, clocking a growth of around 17 to 18 percent year-on-year for the last four years.

"We are already working on the financing of aircraft and how that should happen from India. We are losing a lot of resources to outsiders."

"We are already working on the financing of aircraft and how that should happen from India. We are losing a lot of resources to outsiders," he added.

Prabhu also disclosed that an air cargo policy is in the pipeline whose main objective would be to turn India into a logistics hub by 2030.

"A policy to provide thrust to air cargo has been drafted for the first time and will fuel the growth of the aviation sector and boost the economy," he said. The Union minister also stated that India needs 2,300 new aircraft to meet the future air travel demand.

Prabhu added that the government has also released a drone policy in an attempt to ensure that drone devices become the preferred choice for multiple sectors, including disaster management and agriculture.