10 Years of BA in India and the BAOA Role

By Bobby Chadha, Chairman and Managing Director SRC Aviation Pvt Ltd

An important but often overlooked component of a country’s economy is the role connectivity plays in its growth. Air, land, voice, data connectivity are all essential to improving productivity in a modern economy.

Aviation has rapidly emerged as a leading connector especially in fast growing countries like India. In India more than 200 greenfield airport projects are being developed, which points to the importance of this industry to the Indian economy.

There are two strands in the aviation industry: commercial and business. Once a small niche area, the latter is quickly gaining ground as more and more business executives use private aircraft for connectivity.

Over the last ten years business aviation has grown twice as fast as commercial aviation — an annual growth rate of almost 35 per cent compared to 18 per cent in commercial aviation.

The restrictions on connectivity during the pandemic caused almost $14 trillion of economic losses globally. India too had a major national lockdown for about six months which caused major economic disruption. Travel ground to a halt as did business-related travel.

With restrictions on movement being gradually lifted, the economy is rebounding and business travel will likely grow rapidly. And India is strategically placed to take advantage of this growth in business aviation. Attracted by a growing economy and the largest consumer market in the world, an ever increasing number of global companies are flying into India to be part of this exciting market. That means more executives flying into India and with that a bigger role for business aviation.

India’s business aviation industry will need to be ready to provide the support required by these executives. This industry is an integral part of India’s economic growth and the “mission $5 trillion”. Foreign investment is vital for the growth of the Indian economy and the government needs to support all the industries that help attract this investment.

Business aviation is a vital cog in India’s economic growth and its growth needs to be nurtured to make it easier for global business to connect with India. The BAOA (Business Aircraft Operators Association) of India has played a major role in representing the interests of the business aviation industry. They actively lobby policy makers on issues that are important to the growth of the industry in the country.

ON BAOA’S 10TH ANNIVERSARY

“Congratulations to each and every member of BAOA on the anniversary! We have come a very long way from our first day at the Delhi Flying Club meeting. Let us all strive relentlessly to solve the industry issues amicably with the relevant stakeholders and work towards growing this industry wider & deeper. Cheers!”
—Sudhir Nayak, Senior Vice President & Head - Aviation, Reliance Commercial Dealers

 

“Congrats to all the members of BAOA . Thanks to the founding members and the President for all the hard work they have put in. BAOA has come a long way since its humble origins. On this occ asion let us appeal to the entire GA/BA industry to unite and strengthen the industry body. I would like to call all GA/BA Ow ners and operators for supporting the organization in its journey into the next decade.”
—Wing Commander Julian D’Souza (Retd), Vice President - Aviation, Jupiter Capital