4th Heli-India Summit 2022 | 15 Oct 2022

Why in News?

Recently, the Minister of Civil Aviation has inaugurated the 4^th Heli-India Summit 2022 in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

• Theme: Helicopters for Last Mile Connectivity.

What are the Highlights of the Summit?

• Announcing the achievements in the Civil Aviation sector, it was noted that the country had only 74 airports from 1947 to 2014, but it now has 141, with 67 added in the last seven years.
• It is proposed to build a civil enclave in Jammu and the Srinagar’s present terminal will be expanded three times.
• Announced to develop Fractional Ownership Model and HEMS (Helicopter Emergency Medical Services) pilot called Project.
  • Fractional Ownership Model: It helps to grow the non-scheduled operations.
    • It will lower the barrier on the cost of acquisition of helicopters and airplanes through pooled capital by multiple owners.
  • HEMS: It is called Project Sanjeevani; a helicopter will be deployed to provide emergency medical services at AIIMS Rishikesh.
    • The helicopter will be based at the hospital at 20-minute notice and will have a service covering an area of 150 km radius.

What is the Scenario of the Civil Aviation Sector of India?

• About:
  • Helicopters have multifarious roles, providing urban connectivity and the other roles of helicopter service have been the emergency medical services and disaster management during floods, rescue operations etc.
  • The civil aviation industry in India has emerged as one of the fastest growing industries in the country during the last three years and can be broadly classified into scheduled air transport service which includes domestic and international airlines, non-scheduled air transport service which consists of charter operators and air taxi operators, air cargo service, which includes air transportation of cargo and mail.
• Significance:
  • India is currently the 7^th largest civil aviation market in the world and is expected to become the third-largest civil aviation market within the next 10 years.
  • India is expected to overtake China and the United States as the world's third-largest air passenger market in the next ten years, by 2030, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
  • In FY22, airports in India pegged the domestic passenger traffic to be 166.8 million, a 58.5% YoY increase, and international passenger traffic to be 22.1 million, a 118% YoY increase, as compared to FY 2020-21.
• Opportunity:
  • FDI: 100% Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) allowed under Automatic route for Ground Handling Services and Maintenance Repair and Overhaul Services (MRO) and for both green and brownfield projects.
  • Scope of Growth: The Indian civil Aviation MRO market, at present, stands at around USD 900 million and is anticipated to grow to USD 4.33 billion by 2025 increasing at a CAGR of about 14-15%.
    • The nation's airplane fleet is projected to quadruple in size to approximately 2500 airplanes by 2038.
  • Connecting New Airports: The government aims to develop 100 airports by 2024 (under the UDAN Scheme) and create world-class civil aviation infrastructure to be at par with global standards.

Way Forward

• Civil Aviation has now become the need of the hour not only for India but for humankind across the world as it always brings with it two important multipliers, the economic multiplier and the employment multiplier.
• The industry stakeholders should engage and collaborate with policy makers to implement efficient and rational decisions that would boost India’s civil aviation industry.
• With the right policies and relentless focus on quality, cost and passenger interest, India would be well placed to achieve its vision of becoming the third-largest aviation market by 2020.

Source: PIB