A quiet sky after Aero India 2023 in Bengaluru
BENGALURU: The 14th edition of the biennial Aero India 2023 that was held at Air Force Station, Yelahanka, concluded on Friday. The event witnessed the forging of several major agreements and an overwhelming response with over 6.5 lakh visitors.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who inaugurated Asia’s biggest air show on Monday, set a huge target of $5 billion in defence exports by 2025, which is currently around $1.5 billion. To realise the same, he made it clear that India is open to partnerships with friendly countries like never before. To push the ‘Make in India, Make for the World’ initiative, Modi encouraged Indian entrepreneurs to engage in defence production, besides calling upon the youth to carry out research in the sector.
The event became a stage to strengthen ties and deepen cooperation with friendly nations, as Defence Minister Rajnath Singh hosted 160 delegates from several countries, including defence and deputy defence ministers from 27 countries, 15 defence and service chiefs and 12 permanent secretaries from 80 countries in the Defence Ministers’ Conclave.
Stating that Aero India, in which around 800 defence companies including around 100 foreign and 700 Indian firms took part, showcased to the world the ‘New Defence Sector’ of ‘New India’, Singh expressed satisfaction that the event paved a new way to strengthen the Indian defence industry and termed it as the beginning of a new era of ‘Aatmanirbharta’.
The five-day event became a platform for the forging of major agreements. The ‘Bandhan’ event witnessed 266 partnerships, including 201 MoUs, 53 major announcements, nine product launches and three Transfers of Technology, worth around Rs 80,000 crore.
Some of the major agreements were between HAL and Safran Helicopter Engines, France, for the design, development, manufacture and lifetime support of helicopter engines; Bharat Electronics Ltd and Aeronautical Development Agency for Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft; BSS Material Limited and Pegasus Engineering, an ADUSEA Inc.
Division (USA), for logistic drones for the Indian Army towards last-mile delivery for forward troops; and Gopalan Aerospace India Pvt. Ltd. and Omnipol, Czech Republic, for manufacture and assembly of the first passenger aircraft (L 410 UVP-E20 version) by a private company in India.
Various combat aircraft performed aerobatics, with the United States Air Force’s state-of-the-art fifth-generation stealth fighter, F-35A Lightning II, and Embraer C-390 Millennium, a Brazilian military transport aircraft, taking part for the first time. Over 2 lakh people witnessed the air show on the last day of the event.
Airbus, IISc ink MoU to advance aerospace education
Bengaluru: To expand access to aerospace education and research in the country, Airbus and the IISc signed an MoU at Aero India 2023, which will help foster relevant skills and develop a leading pipeline of talented workforce that will power the future of the aerospace sector in India.Under the agreement, Airbus and IISc will collaborate to develop curriculum, training, modules and promote research and innovation on topics such as sustainability, engineering, cybersecurity, AI and big data that are relevant to the aerospace sector. It will also give students an opportunity to engage with Airbus experts, who will mentor them on their research projects. “The Indian aerospace sector is on a growth trajectory. This is further broadening the scope for talented professionals in the country, who have the right skills to meet future needs. The partnership with IISc will foster potential synergies in the aeronautical sector that will help develop the next generation of aerospace professionals in the country,” said Suraj Chettri, Director, Human Resources, Airbus India & South Asia.