India, EU seek greater cooperation in aviation, more direct flights
New Delhi, Apr 21 (EFE).- India and European Union on Friday concluded a summit on the aviation sector, aimed at deepening cooperation in the area through more opportunities for the industry and exploring the potential for more direct flights.
“Around 60% of all passengers travelling between the EU and India connect via hub airports in other countries, showing the significant potential for growing the direct (flights) market,” the EU delegation to India said in a statement.
It added that both sides agreed during the meeting in New Delhi that “closer cooperation will generate significant opportunities for their respective industries.”
The European commissioner for transport, Adina Valean, called for establishing a joint platform for dialog on aviation during the summit’s inauguration on Thursday.
India’s junior minister for civil aviation, Jyotiraditya Scindia, highlighted that European industries could “tap these opportunities, and become a part of the fastest growing aviation market in the world.”
As part of its “Make in India” program, the Indian government is looking to boost domestic aircraft manufacturing capacity by reducing taxes and allowing foreign direct investment in the sector, Scindia said.
Around 300 representatives from the aviation sector in India and the EU gathered in New Delhi to discuss the “shared challenges,” according to a press release by the civil aviation ministry, as part of a series of conferences on the sustainability of air traffic and the development of unmanned aircraft, among other issues.
During the summit, Indian airport and civil aviation authorities signed letters of intent and a memorandum of understanding with the European delegates regarding cooperation.
The aviation sector in India – now touted to have become the world’s most populated nation – is going through a rapid expansion phase.
This is reflected in both expanding infrastructure and the acquisition of aircraft, after flag carrier Air India announced a purchase order of 250 planes from Europe’s Airbus and 220 from American company Boeing, marking the largest single order in the history of commercial aviation. EFE
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