INDIA COULD MAKE CIVILIAN AIRCRAFT Govt mulls 20-seater jet for use within the nation

The government is considering manufacturing civilian aircraft and would like to move ahead with the plan "very fast", a civil aviation ministry official said on Monday, reports PTI. The country's domestic aviation market is one of the fastest growing in the world and has registered high double digit growth for more than two years. Many airlines are embarking on ambitious expansion plans and authorities are working on developing new airports to cater to rising demand as well as boosting regional air connectivity.

"We are considering manufacturing our own civilian aircraft... definitely, the concept is there and we are looking for smaller aircraft like a 20-seater which can be used within the country and this also is supported by our policy of Make in India," said Shefali Juneja, Director at the Civil Aviation ministry. Currently, aircraft are imported or taken on lease from overseas lessors. "Developing our own civilian aircraft is something we are considering... and is something which we need to move forward very fast," she said. She was speaking at the 'ASEAN-India Connectivity Summit' (AICS) in the national capital region.

In efforts to strengthen air connectivity between India and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member countries, a civil aviation task force is being put together to encourage consultations between the countries. Under the ASEAN-India cooperation framework, a joint working group is being set up and it would initially focus on safety and security aspects, besides air navigation services.

The first meeting of the joint working group is to be held in January 2018, Juneja said. At present, there are no air services between India and four ASEAN countries -- Brunei, Cambodia, the Philippines and Lao-PDR.

Listing out the challenges in the India-ASEAN aviation market, Juneja also said there is "only onesided operation by ASEAN carriers in India-Myanmar, India-Indonesia, IndiaVietnam markets". ASEAN has 10 members, including include Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and Brunei.

The summit was jointly organised by industry body CII and the ASEAN India Centre. The AICS aims to accelerate existing connectivity prospects; identify issues of concern, evolve suitable policy recommendations and develop strategies to enhance economic, industrial and trade relations between India and the ASEAN.