New Delhi: India’s aviation industry is poised for unprecedented growth, with the country expected to receive at least one aircraft per week over the next ten years, according to Vikram Rai, CEO of GE Aerospace South Asia. Speaking at a recent international leadership summit in New Delhi, Rai underscored the opportunities and responsibilities accompanying this rapid expansion of air travel in India.
Highlighting the scale of the growth, Rai noted that 39 million Indians travelled abroad last year, while the number of operational airports has more than doubled from 75 to around 160 over the past decade. India now ranks as the third-largest civil aerospace market globally, a testament to the nation’s evolving infrastructure, economic aspirations, and expanding middle class. “Aspirational India cannot wait,” he remarked.
Rai stressed that with each new aircraft comes the responsibility to power it safely, reliably, and sustainably, underlining GE Aerospace’s commitment to delivering cutting-edge technology while supporting India’s ambitions for a robust and self-reliant aerospace ecosystem. He praised the government’s flagship UDAN scheme, which aims to make air travel affordable for citizens across all socio-economic strata, noting a personal anecdote where his domestic help expressed excitement about flying for the first time a symbol of how air travel is becoming accessible to all.
Emphasizing India’s technological progress, Rai highlighted Operation Sindoor, a recent military initiative that demonstrated the prowess of indigenous aviation technology. “India is not just a purchaser of technology; it is a producer of high-tech, homegrown solutions,” he said. He reiterated GE Aerospace’s dedication to supporting India’s vision for Amritkal achieving a developed nation status by 2047 through initiatives in manufacturing, engineering, and skill development.
GE Aerospace’s footprint in India includes a technology centre in Bengaluru, employing over 1,500 engineers working on next-generation aerospace solutions, and a manufacturing facility in Pune producing critical engine components. Rai described these efforts as true embodiments of the ‘Make in India’ initiative, blending innovation, engineering excellence, and industrial capacity.
Rai also highlighted the transformative potential of aerospace for India’s youth. “For aspirational India, aerospace is not just about aircraft or engines. It is about the inventions in Bengaluru, the work of technicians in Nagpur, the young passenger who looks out of the airplane window and says, ‘I want to build this airplane,’ and the teenager dreaming of space travel,” he said.
As India’s aerospace sector continues its rapid ascent, GE Aerospace plans to deepen collaboration with Indian partners, contributing both to industrial growth and to nurturing a generation of engineers and innovators who will shape the future of aviation and space exploration in the country.
This projection of one aircraft per week reflects not just numbers but a transformational journey for India’s aviation sector, signaling its emergence as a global hub for aerospace innovation, technology, and infrastructure.