As global majors battle it out, SMEs look to make a mark at Aero India

The 11th biennial edition of Aero India is likely to see fighter aircrafts Gripen E and F-16 fight it out for a $2-billion order from the Indian Air Force.

The makers of these fighter aircraft – Saab Group and Lockheed Martin – will display their might before the India Air force and Indian Navy, who have called RFIs (Request for Information) to buy aircraft to fill their missing gaps.

The Aero India, along with the air display, is holding a defence exhibition at the Air Force Station, Yelahanka, in Bengaluru from February 14-18.

In addition to Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, other ministers attending are Minister of State for Ministry of Science & Technology and Ministry of Earth Sciences YS Chowdary; Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (Independent Charge) Rajiv Pratap Rudy; Chief of Army Staff, General Bipin Rawat; Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa; and Defence Secretary G Mohan Kumar, Secretary (Defence Production).

To give a boost to the air show, aerobatic teams participating in the show will be the Indian Air Force Sarang Team, the Indian Air Force Surya Kiran Team, the Scandinavian Air Show Team from Sweden, and the Evolvkos Aerobatic Team from the UK.

According to Defence Exhibition Organisation (DEO), the highlights of this year’s show are participation from 270 Indian Companies and 279 foreign companies. That is a total of 549 companies.

The total area of the show has grown from 24,403 square meters to 27,678 square meters this year. Number of aircraft participating is 72.

The gross area has also increased from 2,50,000 square meters to 2,60,000 square meters. The air show is expected that 2 lakh business visitors will attend the show.

Aero India, which began in 1996, has carved a niche for itself as a premium aerospace and aviation exhibition in the international arena, and has become one of the most sought after exhibitions in the Asian region in terms of participation from across the globe.

Few States are also participating at the event to draw investors’ attention. Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Kerala are setting up exclusive SEZ pavilions.

Karnataka is led by Minister for Large & Medium Industries & Infrastructure Development, RV Deshpande. The State is expected to showcase its aerospace eco-system and highight its policy and aero space park coming up near Devanahalli.

Andhra Pradesh will also hold a meet on Aerospace and Defence Manufacturing Opportunities, chaired by Minister of Civil Aviation Ashok Gajapathi Raju Pusapati.

Under the ‘Make in India’ Initiative the CII, FICCI, PHD will jointly conduct the following events on February 15 – “Indian Aerospace: Investor’s Meet” by CII; and the “Make in India in Aerospace: Are MSMEs geared for it? – Reflections and the Way Forward” by PHD and CII.

There will also be country-specific round tables by Indian Chambers (B2B); as well as Indo-Swiss, Indo-UK and Indo-Polish B2B meetings between various companies. Confirmation has been received from 30 countries and the process is still on.

In total, 65 delegates comprising Ministers of Defence, Service Chiefs, Heads of Department from Bahrain, Bangladesh, Brazil, Brunei, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Egypt, France, Germany, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Nigeria, Oman, Seychelles, Sri Lanka, Sudan, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Tanzania, Thailand, Turkey, the UAE, the UK, the US and Uzbekistan will be present.

Exhibitors from the US, France, the UK, Russia, Israel, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, Ukraine, Singapore, Sweden, Spain, South Africa, Italy, the UAE, South Korea, Hong Kong, the Czech Republic, Canada, Australia, Poland and Greece will participate.

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