India Aviation Sector Set to Take Off, Says FAA’s Marion Blakey

NEW DELHI, India (May 9, 2007) –The civil aviation ministry and U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) jointly organized a three-day summit from April 23-25 in New Delhi. The objective of the US-India Aviation Partnership Summit was to generate discussions between the U.S. and Indian aviation sectors regarding industry growth opportunities and challenges. The Airports Authority of India (AAI), the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration also co-sponsored the summit.

U.S. Federal Aviation Administrator Marian Blakey gestures as she answers a question during a press conference in New Delhi on April 25. Blakey was in India for the U.S.-India Aviation Cooperation Programme which is set to promote greater collaborations between the US and Indian aviation sectors. US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), in partnership with the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MOCA) sponsered a three-day summit which attracted more than 300 participants. (Photo:AFP)

The summit was organized by the civil aviation ministry and the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA).

“The objective of the U.S.-India Aviation Partnership Summit is to generate discussions between U.S. and Indian aviation sector regarding industry growth and opportunities and challenges,” according an official release.

The summit addressed among other issues, air traffic management, airspace utilization and bilateral collaboration in airborne systems.

"The summit will help build long-term strategic and commercial relationship between the US and Indian aviation sectors,” the release said.

AVIATION AGREEMENT
Marion Blakey, Administrator of the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), who also participated in the three-day summit, will sign an aviation cooperation agreement in the coming week. Blakey said the agreement she expects to sign would be only the second such pact the United States has with another country. The other country is China. “This will be very much a two-way street,” she added.

Blakey said that India would benefit from expert U.S. advice on aviation regulation and facilities, while the United States would be able learn from India’s rapid installation of new technology, like satellite-based aircraft monitoring. Blakey told reporters in a teleconference that it was important for the FAA to make such contacts to ensure smooth interaction with two rapidly growing aviation markets.

After three days in India, Blakey is due to travel to Dubai for talks with aviation officials and air carriers. She pointed out that India has seen passenger growth of 25 per cent a year recently, while the Persian Gulf region had posted double digit passenger growth in 41 of the past 43 months. Blakey has expressed optimism about the Indian carrier and aviation business, observing that it was very focused, and due to hit a period of high growth after an initial period of heavy losses. “I hope India is able to move forward towards a more corporate-style of aviation. That has to develop significantly. I am very optimistic about the future of Indian carriers and the Indian aviation business,” she said.
Lauding what she called “one of the fastest growing (aviation) systems in the world,” Blakey, however cautioned that while growth and opportunities are welcome, “it comes with attendant challenges.” She said that though the Indian aviation industry was passing through a period of heavy losses, just like the U.S. aviation industry, a growth period would naturally follow.

Blakey said that the FAA’s mandate was on safety, and it was in this regard, that she had come along to New Delhi to assess the potential for a Bilateral Aviation Safety Agreement (BASA). Blakey also said other areas of bilateral cooperation could also be considered, such as airport maintenance and security, performance based navigation, satellite-based navigation and geo-augmented navigation. ¦ NEED FOR MORE AIRSPACE Civil aviation authorities are asking India’s armed forces to release more air space for civil aviation needs. According to the Airport Authority of India (AAI) chairman, K Ramalingam, the release of air space, so far reserved for military purposes, would help ease traffic congestion in India.

“Right now about 35 per cent of the country’s airspace is used for military activities. In Delhi the total military (air) space is 70 per cent. That space can be shared between the civil and military operators,” said Ramalingam, at the US India Aviation Partnership Summit.

The AAI has said that it is planning to use hightech “performance-based navigation (PBN)” to improve air-traffic management in India. PBN systems are already in use in the U.S. and include satellite-based navigation technology that allows aircraft to fly in a pre-meditated manner.

FAA officials attending the summit said that such systems allow aircraft to fly shorter, straighter routes, which ultimately result in lesser fuel costs.

“We had discussed specified key areas in our meeting last year and the use of this (PBN) system was one. We have decided to implement the system but it will take time. All these have to happen in a phased manner,” said Ramalingam.

American companies participating in the summit, like Lockheed Martin and Honeywell, have offered advanced info-tech solutions to resolve major air-traffic related problems.

(Compiled from news dispatches by A. Vincent)