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By Madeeha Mujawar | Daanish Anand Mar 21, 2023 1:21:46 PM IST (Updated)
Indian aviation industry leaders gathered in Delhi for the CAPA India Aviation Summit. This is the first time after 2019 that CAPA has organised this summit. The event drew top executives from Air India, Spice Jet, Vistara, and Akasa Air.
Indian aviation industry leaders gathered in Delhi for the CAPA India Aviation Summit. This is the first time after 2019 that CAPA has organised this summit. The event drew top executives from Air India, Spice Jet, Vistara, and Akasa Air.
Campbell Wilson, the CEO of Air India, kicked off the event with an update on the airline's plans. He announced that Air India is temporarily reducing the frequency of some of its US-bound flights due to a shortage of crew.
“If we cast our eyes forward, maybe 12 to 15 months, we will have the first of our 470 new aircraft already in service. We will in the next couple of months have restored all of our brand of white bodies into service. We will be starting to see the retrofitted white bodies into service. So I think in the context of global aviation, the pace of the transformation will be if not unprecedented, will be close to it,” Wilson added.
Ajay Singh of Spice Jet told CNBC-TV18 that the airline is considering converting more of its dues into equity to reduce its debt. Singh added that the company had already converted a significant portion of its debt with Carlyle, its largest lessor, into equity, which had strengthened its balance sheet.
CNBC-TV18 also spoke to Vinod Kannan of Vistara on the company’s merger with Air India and he said that the employees might see some designation changes after the merger. But he also added that these employees will also get new opportunities and will get to be a part of an airline that is three times bigger in scale.
The Indonesian sector is all set to reach new skies as more and more airlines are slated to place more and more new aeroplane orders. Akasa Air which placed an order of 72 aircraft in the beginning is all set to place another big order of more narrow-body aircraft by the end of this year as the airline feels that narrow-body is an important element for the airline strategy and a good future ahead.
Vinay Dube, CEO of Akasa Air, revealed that the airline would launch its first international destination by the end of the year. He added that the company had plans to place another big order of more narrow-body aircraft by the end of the year as narrow-body aircraft are essential for the airline's future.
Aditya Ghosh, co-founder of Akasa Air, expressed optimism about the aviation industry's future. “I think, we're looking at something like a seven percent to 10 percent annual growth over the next five to seven years. Also, traffic is back to what it was pre-COVID but now it's time to kind of look ahead,” he added.
The event showcased the industry's growing optimism about the future, with many airlines announcing expansion plans and significant investments in new aircraft. It is evident that the Indian aviation industry is ready to soar higher and reach new heights.