5 Key Insights on Airbus and Boeing Eye India's 'Soaring Skies'

5 Key Insights on Airbus and Boeing Eye India's 'Soaring Skies'

NEW DELHI — The Indian skies are soaring with booming air traffic, despite only a fraction of its people flying each year. Aircraft manufacturers Airbus and Boeing are seeking lucrative deals at the flagship Aero India exhibition, which begins Monday.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) will also hold its annual general meeting in New Delhi, the capital of the world's fifth-largest economy, another clear sign of India's market punch.

With the sustained growth of its economy and middle class, India has emerged as the third-largest air market in the world, after the United States and China.

India is the rising star of global aerospace, said Remi Maillard, Airbus India and South Asia chief. It is the fastest-growing commercial aviation market in the world — and it will remain so for the next 20 years.

Airbus rival Boeing, which will also take part in the five-day Aero India show in Bengaluru for global aero vendors organized by the defense ministry, shares this enthusiasm.

It's the most dynamic market on the planet — and certainly the most exciting, said Salil Gupte, head of Boeing India.

The Indian civil aviation ministry boasts soaring skies in a sector that has experienced a meteoric rise.

That growth should lead to an increase in traffic in South Asia, mainly in India, by more than 7 percent per year until 2043, according to Boeing's forecasts.

For Airbus, India made up nearly a 10th of its global commercial aircraft delivered last year — 766 commercial air-craft in total to 86 customers in 2204, with 72 going to Indian carriers.

Boeing, which was shaken by scandals related to the production quality of its aircraft and slowed down by a strike, has not released figures for 2024.

Neither aircraft manufacturer wanted to detail its ambitions for the Aero India show.

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CEO / Co-Founder

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