DEMAND OF GENERAL AVIATION IN

LIBERALIZED ERA

Submitted By: Under Guidance Of:

Rupendra Dẻv Jaiswal Dr. Ash Narayan Sah

Professor
MBA (Aviation Management) (Aviation Forecasting Technique)

IVth Semester

Enrollment No. - R120108038

A Dissertation report submitted in partial fulfillment of

requirement for

Masters of Business Administration (Aviation

Management)

Pagẻ | 1
UNIVERSITY OF PETROLEUM AND ENERGY STUDIES, DEHRADUN,
UTTARAKHAND, INDIA

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This is to acknowledge with thanks the help, guidance and support that I have
received during the completion of my dissertation.

At the very outset, I express my gratitude and obligation to Dr. Ash Narayan Sah,
Professor (Aviation Forecasting Technique) for guidance and help extended in the
completion of this dissertation.

I have no words to express my deep sense of gratitude to the management of

University of Petroleum & energy Studies, for giving me an opportunity to work
on this dissertation.

(Rupendra Dev Jaiswal)

M.B.A. (Aviation Management)

IVth Semester
Roll No: R120108038

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 DECLARATION

This is to certify that the dissertation report on “DEMAND OF GENERAL

AVIATION IN LIBERALIZED ERA” submitted to the University of Petroleum &
energy Studies, Dehradun, by Rupendra Dev Jaiswal, in partial fulfillment of the
requirement for the award of the degree of M.B.A Aviation Management is a
bonafide work carried out by him under my supervision and guidance.

This work has not been submitted anywhere else for any other degree/diploma. The
original Work was carried out during October 2009 to April 2010 at UPES, NCR
Campus, Dehradun.

Dated Dr. Ash Narayan Sah

Professor (Aviation Forecasting Technique)

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Authorization
1

Acknowledgement
2

Declaration
3

Table of Content
4-5

Executive summary/abstract
6

I. Introduction
7-11

• What is General Aviation

• Research Objective

• Limitations of the study

• Users of General Aviation

• Regulatory Bodies In General Aviation

• Types of Aircraft use in General Aviation

II. Composition of General Aviation in all over the World

11

III. Utilization of General Aviation Aircraft by the Users 12

IV. Demand of General Aviation in Liberalized era in India 13-19

V. Drivers of General Aviation demand 20

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VI. Factors Affecting the demand of General Aviation 21-23

• Lack of infrastructure

• Shortage of Manpower

• Restrictive Regulation

VII. Comparison of Indian and Global Market of General Aviation 24-26

• Comparison of Indian and Global market in terms of Flight Hours

• Comparison of Indian and Global market in terms of having General Aviation

Aircraft

• Comparison of Indian and Global market in terms of passenger Carried

VIII. Trend Analysis of General Aviation market

27-30

IX. Relationship between GDP growth and GA growth

31-33

X. Recommendation

33-35

XI. References

36

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 Executive Summary

General Aviation (GA) is a vital component of the aviation sector but over the years it is
neglected and untouched General Aviation (GA) comprises all civilian aviation activities except
for commercial airline service. GA includes a wide variety of activities, such as

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personal/recreational, flight training, sightseeing, aerial patrol, filming and photography,
utility/construction support, electronic news gathering, law enforcement, business and corporate
flying. GA aircraft range from single and multi-engine piston aircraft, to corporate jets,
helicopters, gliders, balloons, and experimental (homebuilt) aircraft

General Aviation activity has historically display cyclical trends during which activity has risen
and declined with changing economic times. The General Aviation industry as a whole
rebounded with the strong national economies in the mid to late 1990s, due in part to factors such
as record low unemployment rates and rising per capita income.
General activities have affected the airports within the country. In between 1992 – 1997, overall
GA activity declined even while the country’s economy was growing at a rapid pace. The
number of General Aviation operations and aircraft had remained steady between 1997 – 2000.
After 1998 robust economy is finally having a positive impact on GA traffic and demand which
leads to upturn in general aviation activities. From 2001 to 2008 there is positive growth and
demand in general aviation in all over the world and in India as well

The study points out certain facts that will develop understanding of General Aviation and erase
misconception. This study contains the information of development of general aviation with
different time segment. Study gives in depth analysis of demand of general aviation emerges
after liberalization, growth of general aviation over the years and forecasted trend of general
aviation over the upcoming years based on an analysis of past trends and practices

Introduction

What is General Aviation

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General aviation (GA) is one of two categories of civil aviation. It refers to all flights other than
military and scheduled airline flights, both private and commercial. General aviation covers a
huge range of activities, both commercial and non-commercial, including private flying, flight
training, air ambulance, police aircraft, aerial firefighting, air charter, bush flying, gliding, and
many others. Experimental aircraft, light-sport aircraft and very light jets have emerged in recent
years as new trends in general aviation.

General aviation is an important element of the aviation sector, as it provides basic trained
manpower for scheduled airlines and connectivity to small towns not normally served by
scheduled airlines, and helps to promote tourism. General aviation also includes non-scheduled
flying and training activities by operators / schools authorized by the DGCA. General aviation
operators usually cater to small airports and remote areas, which are not normally equipped with
high technology and capital intensive navigation and other airport facilities

The General Aviation (GA) sector covers a very wide range of activities. It includes flying for
the purposes of recreation, personal transport, and business. The types of operation are also very
different. At one end of the spectrum are balloons, gliders, hang gliders, micro lights,
gyrocopters and small helicopters, all of which will tend to operate from relatively small sites
that may not even be readily recognizable as airfields. At the other end of the spectrum are
corporate jets, which may include variants of airliners. In between are thousands of aircraft of all
shapes and sizes from amateur-built to mass-produced touring aircraft to ex-military fast jets.

GA aircraft enable people, especially those in smaller communities and remote areas, to move
quickly and efficiently across the country and around the world for both business and pleasure.
GA is disproportionately important because it touches so many sectors of the economy – from
the helicopters transporting accident victims to hospitals, to corporate jets carrying executives to
meetings, to single piston engine aircraft flown by enthusiasts on the weekends.
GA includes flights related to business or corporate transportation of people or cargo, personal
transportation (visiting family), air ambulance, flight training and for many unique purposes,
such as fire spotting and pipeline patrol. GA operations are not determined by who owns the
aircraft. GA aircraft may be wholly owned, jointly-owned, rented, chartered or leased. GA
operations are not defined by the airman certificate of the pilot operating the aircraft; the pilot of
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a GA aircraft may hold a student, private, commercial, or air transport pilot certificate,
depending on the purpose of the flight and the number of pilots prescribed to operate it by the
manufacturer.

Research objectives

My research work has the following objective –

 Definition and characteristics of General Aviation
 Need of General Aviation
 Showing development of General Aviation with different time segments
 Present scenario of General Aviation industry globally and in India
 Total market of General Aviation
 Trend of General Aviation after liberalization and open sky policy
 Total growth in demand of General Aviation industry
 Forecasting and trend in demand of General Aviation in upcoming years
 Factors affecting the demand of General Aviation
 Drivers of General Aviation industry

Limitations:

This study is very much dependent upon the secondary data sources available which may leads
to data obsoleteness. This study does not include primary data sources. Absolute data of total
general aviation market and total traffic movement in general aviation industry in various years
is very hard to find out.

Users of General Aviation Aircraft: - Fallowing are the users, characterized as per the
uses of General Aviation.

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Personal – Aircraft flown for the personal purposes of the owner are Personal-Use. The owner-
pilots of these aircraft often fly under Visual Flight Rules (VFR) and thus impose a limited
burden on the national air traffic control system. Further, they are assumed to tie-down their
aircraft rather than rent hangars. It is assumed that they do not subscribe to a commercial weather
service.

Business – These aircraft are flown by owner-pilots for business transportation without a
professional crew. A common example is a salesperson that uses his own aircraft to visit
different areas of his sales region. Such owners are assumed to share a hangar with other users
and pay a business insurance rate. They are assumed to purchase the commercial weather report
service since travel is important to the conduct of their business and, on average; they fly more
frequently than personal users
.
Corporate, Utility, and Others – This category includes all uses which are assumed to use
professional crews. It includes the operation of corporate executive transportation, Air medical
service, Sight – Seeing, Agriculture and forestry, Air tours, Air taxi, Fire fighting, Hauling logs,
Towing gliders.

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Regulatory Bodies in Global General Aviation industry:-
• International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)
• Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the United States
• Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) in Great Britain
• Luftfahrt-Bundesamt (LBA) in Germany
• Transport Canada in Canada
• Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in India

Types of Aircraft use in General Aviation: - There are several aircraft which are used
in General Aviation operations. General Aviation aircraft can be categorized in fallowing classes.
This are-
Single-engine piston-powered airplanes:- It comprise over 80% of the current GA fleet in All
over the world and are the most common Personal-Use aircraft, thanks to their relatively low
acquisition cost. The single piston engine drives a single propeller, and burns relatively
expensive aviation gasoline.
Multi-engine piston-powered:- Airplanes usually have two piston engines driving separate
propellers. As with single piston aircraft, they use aviation gasoline, and Personal-Use accounts
for much of their flight time.
Single- or Multi-engine Turboprop airplanes: - engines are powered by one or more turbine
engines that drive propellers and burn aviation kerosene (jet fuel). Turboprop aircraft typically
are larger, faster, and more expensive than piston aircraft. Turboprops are flown for a wide
variety of purposes but are most often flown for business, corporate, and other professionally
crewed purposes.
Jet Airplanes: - It has two or three turbofan engines and offers the greatest speeds and range
capabilities of all GA aircraft. Due to the expense and professional requirements of their
operation, jets are most commonly operated by corporate and government users. Jets are further
segmented by weight class into three categories (light, medium, and heavy) to capture significant
cost and use differences.
Piston engine powered rotorcraft: - This is helicopters powered by a single piston engine that
burns avgas. Piston-powered rotorcrafts are generally smaller and less expensive to acquire and

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operate than their turbine-powered cousins and are most commonly flown for instructional or
personal purposes.
Turbine engine powered rotorcraft: - This is helicopters powered by one or two turbine
engines that burn jet fuel. Aerial observation, law enforcement, and medical evacuation account
for much of their usage
Experimental: - This aircraft generally are home-built or kit aircraft flown by enthusiasts. They
have piston or turbine engines but usually have piston engines. This category also includes some
vintage aircraft and rebuilt military aircraft of which there are limited working examples.

Composition of General Aviation in all over the World: fallowing pie chart gives a
wide idea of the total composition of GA fleet in all over the world.

Utilization of General Aviation Aircraft by the Users: - This chart enables us to understand
the total utilization of GA aircraft by the different users.

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Demand of General Aviation in Liberalized era in India: -
After 1991 when India opens up his economy and attract foreign investment in India, at that
time India foreseen the huge growth in all sectors and industries including civil aviation as well.
There were lots of foreign companies had take interest to invest in civil aviation. There are many

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other factors which increase the demand of air travel which leads to growth in civil aviation and
General Aviation as well. These factors are:-
 Increase foreign investment
 GDP growth rate
 Increase Per Capita income
 Increase Per Capita expenditure
 Increase demand of leisure travel
 Globalization
In liberalized and globalized environment, India saw the positive growth rate over the years in
general aviation market. Indian general aviation market is increasing day by day but not as much
as the developed countries are increasing.

Growth in General Aviation market can be easily seen by fallowing data of increasing non-
scheduled operators over the years published by the DGCA.

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Pagẻ | 15
From fallowing graph and charts we can easily see the growth in nonsechdule operators
and increase in aircraft use in General Aviation.

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Increase in flight operation and passenger carried by the non –scheduled operators over the last
three years in India can be also analyzed by fallowing graph.

In India General Aviation market growing by on its full flash. Most of study also finds that there
is huge growth in GA market in upcoming years. The Business Aviation Association of India
estimates that general aviation in that country is likely to grow by 30% to 40%. With more than
700,000 Indians accounting for a cumulative wealth of $3 billion, this comes as no surprise.
Orders in 2006 saw the fleet double from 50 in 2009.

In order to encourage general aviation, the Committee recommends the following incentives:
reduced navigation and landing charges, rationalization of sales tax on ATF and AVGAS to
bring it at par with Central Sales Tax, waiver of the proposed sector-specific cess for subsidizing
34 essential air services, lower hangar charges at airports, etc

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Increase in passenger carried by General Aviation aircraft can be better viewed and analyzed by
fallowing bar Graph.

As major businesses and high-net-worth individuals line up to become aircraft owners, medium
and some small companies are also looking to buy aircraft.

Presently some 300 applications for the importation of general aviation aircraft are pending with
the government; 100 were cleared last year. . The commercial aviation has risen to phenomenal
growth, India had 135 aircrafts in last two years and the sector has decided upon adding 500
more to its fleet. He also focused on the traffic congestion, about 31% in the metros and 46% in
non-metros. There is an estimated business of 2,900 cr in the private charter industry. India
forms 12 per cent of the worldwide business jets market. The demand for private or business jets
in India is expected to grow at 50 per cent on an annual basis over the next few years. Airports
Council International, says that for the 15 airports in India that reported traffic figures to ACI,
passengers increased from 43.5 million in 2005 to 59.2 million in 2006 - a 36% hike. The Asia
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Pacific region recorded a growth of around 10% to 11% for both domestic and international
traffic.

North America has been the key market for charter aviation traditionally; but recent slowdown in
the US economy and growing business opportunities in the Asia-Pacific region has led to a
transition of the market towards the latter. As part of the regional boom, India will also see quite
a lot of activity in the area. This growth in general aviation will be backed by the increasing
number of global business jet players entering India.

The general aviation sector still has large scope for growth, by the intervention of private players
and the availability of the purchasing power among the classes. Financing has become easier,
banks are ready to invest in this new sector and the change in mindset of the new generation
leaders has a new rise for general aviation. It's ironic that in a country where the fiery expansion
of the aviation sector is led by a dramatic growth in the economy, business aviation is hit most as
a result of infrastructure restraints.

Fallowing graph shows the prospective growth of tourist charters flights over the last ten years.
The main reason behind the growth in tourist charter flight is just because of India become a well
demanded tourist place in all over the world.

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General Aviation phenomena has been fuelled by fact that increasing number of business houses
realize the importance of owning aircraft/helicopters for transporting top officials or even middle
level ones to destinations they have to move to quickly without depending on scheduled airlines.
The ones, who do not posses one such machine, are increasingly hiring them for plant visits or
moving important customers between company locations,. Almost all major business houses and
High Net worth Individuals (HNI's) are joining the queue to become aircraft owners. Added to
these are many medium and some small companies who are also buying business
aircraft/helicopters

The Indian economy will grow at 7.2 per cent in 2009-10, it is said. However, this figure is
expected to go up to 7.75 per cent, it is predicted. Growth in economy of a country has direct
relationship to the growth in air travel and hence growth of business aviation cannot lag behind.
In the last four years, business aviation has grown by 35 per cent.

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Drivers of General Aviation demand: - There are many factors which are responsible
for the growth in demand of general aviation. The factors contributing to the GA growth can be
broadly classified into economic and policy factors. entry of low cost carriers, higher house hold
incomes, strong economic growth, increased FDI inflows, surging tourist inflow, strong business
growth and supporting government policies are the major drivers for the growth of aviation
sector in India .so the all the factors which are responsible for GA growth are-

 economic Growth (Growth in GDP)

 Growth of Tourism in India

 Growth of demand of leisure travel

 Increase in Purchasing Power of Indian Citizen

 Growth in Airport Infrastructure

 De - Regulations

 Liberal Government Policies

 emergence of Private Players in the market

 easier Finance Available for Aircraft Purchase

 Foreign Investment in Indian Companies

 Increase in inbound and outbound tourists and medical tourism

 emergence of service sector

 Permission to acquire new aircrafts

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Factors Affecting Demand of General Aviation:-

The General aviation sector is most neglected in the civil aviation industry. It is considered as a
step child of aviation in India. There are no separate guidelines for general aviation. In India
there is no concept of FBO’s, helicopters or GA terminals. The reasons which have lead to the
poor growth of general aviation are

Lack of infrastructure- There is non-availability of FBO’s, terminals, and restricted number of

agencies for ground handling, non-availability of MRO’S and increasing cost of maintenance.
There is no parking and the helicopters are operating out of airports. Many other factor in terms
of infrastructure are

• Airports lack parking space, skies are overcrowded,

• Air traffic control needs major improvement in terms of training and technology.

• Regional connectivity is poor and regional hubs need to be created.

• Most of the smaller airports lack basic facilities like VOR/ILS approaches and are at best
fit only for VFR flights.

• There are inadequate international airports and no FBOs or heliports in the country

Shortage of manpower: There is tremendous shortage of pilots, engineers, operational

personnel and ground staff in the aviation industry. Currently there are several hundreds of
young pilots sitting without employment in India. Their main ambition is to join commercial
airlines, which are believed to offer a good pay package. They are unaware of the General
Aviation market, where owners offer equally good salaries and there is a huge shortage of trained
hands.
There is shortage of pilots and engineers. In India there are 35 flying schools, which are not
producing the required number of pilots. There is a demand of about 50,000 employees and
15000 engineers in the airline industry and about 100,000 aviation specialists from all fields of
aviation over the next 5-7 year.

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In the area of General Aviation in the realm of rotor wing, companies have no option but to
employ ex-servicemen who have taken voluntary retirement and have very few years of
operational flying left. There is only one institution in India producing helicopter pilots and that
too only in limited numbers.
The young pilots are also not aware of the fact that if they opt to go for a Helicopter Commercial
Pilots License (H-CPL), as they have completed their Commercial Pilots License (CPL), they
will only have to go in for a conversion and will be allotted 50 per cent credit of their flying
hours for the H-CPL. Same is the story for engineers, operational personnel and ground staff in
the flied of General Aviation. There is shortage of pilots and engineers. In India there are 35
flying schools, which are not producing the required number of pilots. There is a demand of
about 50,000 employees and 15000 engineers in the airline industry

Restrictive regulations- Too many agencies are involved in the procedure of getting a private
aircraft such as MHA, MOCA, DGCA, BCAS, and AAI. 25% of duty is only restricted only to
the corporate aircrafts, which increases costs. The owner has to restrict himself to operational
timings at Delhi and Mumbai, which renders private ownership useless. There are long
procedures for operating foreign flights permit. Though the govt is making changes in the
regulations, it needs to move at a much faster pace on this.

As the air transportation infrastructure is principally designed for airlines,

business and general aviation have traditionally operated at the margins of
the system, and with airports presently confronted with serious problems
ranging from capacity constraints as well as organizational, financial,
environmental and security issues, business and general aviation access to
airport is being compromised.

Fallowing diagram shows us the total restriction and factors which are causing a hurdle for
General Aviation demand.

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 India

Undẻrdẻvẻlo
pẻd GA
sẻctor in

Pagẻ | 24
Comparison of Indian and Global market of General Aviation:-

As we all know that the Indian General Aviation market is growing by its leap and bounds but
despite of that Indian market is far behind the global market of General Aviation in terms of
Passenger Carried by General Aviation Aircraft , No. of Flight Hours, No. of total General
Aviation Aircraft , no. of Operators and total contribution to countries economy.

Comparison of Indian and Global market in terms of Flight Hours:-

From the fallowing line chart we can easily identify that how far India is lacking behind in
comparison to developed countries.

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Comparison of Indian and Global market in terms of having General Aviation Aircraft:-
From the fallowing graph we can easily identify that India is lacking behind from rest of the
developed countries having GA Aircraft.

Comparison of Indian and Global market in terms of Passenger carried by GA Aircraft:-

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Comparison of Indian and Global market in terms of Contribution to Countries economy: -
Fallowing graph shows the total contribution of General Aviation industry to countries GDP or
economy in different developed countries and India as well

From the above charts and criteria we can easily viwed that the India is far behind than of
developing and developed countreis in genral aviation market. It is just because of unawareness
of this sector potential by indian govt. and lack of intiative taken in this sector

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Trend Analysis of General Aviation Market in India:- As we known by this study
that general aviation market is growing year by year with in liberalized and globalized
envioroment . General aviation in the country is likely to grow by 30% to 40%. With more than
700,000 Indians accounting for a cumulative wealth of $3 billion, this comes as no surprise.
Orders in 2006 saw the fleet double from 50 to 100 in 2007.

I have done trend analysis of the growth in general aviation aircraft purchase, no. of flight hours
operated within the India and growth in no. of passenger carried by the general aviation aircraft
in next 5 years. These analyses are –

Growth in General Aviation Aircraft in next five years in India : - Growth in General
aviation aircraft can be analyzed by the method of trend analysis and done as follows.

YeAR GeNeRAL AVIATION AIRCRAFT

2004 151

2005 156

2006 183

2007 229

2008 272

2009 372

After applying the trend model in regression analysis I found fallowing results that are:

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e- expected no. of aircraft

From the above table we can easily find out that the there is prosperous growth in GA aircraft in
next five years with a CAGR of 10% -12%.

Growth in no. of flight hours in next five years: - Growth in No. of flight Hours can be
analyzed by the method of trend analysis and done as follows.

YeAR No. of Flight hours

2004 51456

2005 59371

2006 65367

2007 76737

2008 84733

2009 88277

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e- expected no of flight hours

Growth in no. of Passenger Carried by GA Aircraft in next five years: - Growth in No. of
passenger carried by GA Aircraft can be analyzed by the method of trend analysis and done as
follows

YeAR NO. OF PASSeNGeR CARRIeD

2004 241611

2005 280322

2006 312492

2007 355811

2008 397062

2009 467341

After applying the trend model in regression analysis I found fallowing results that are:

Pagẻ | 30
from above we can easily analyzed that there is huge growth in passenger traffic in next five
years which is likely to grow with a CAGR of 15% - 20% .

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Relationship between GDP growth and General Aviation Growth(Regression
Analysis):- Growth of General Aviation is dependent upon the various factors like growth in
countries economy or GDP growth growth in Per Capita Income or GDP per capita .whereas
growth of General Aviation is measure by the growth in GA Aircraft, no. of passenger carried by
GA aircraft , Growth in flight hours .

A strong statistical relationship therefore exists between General Aviation Growth and both GDP
and GDP per capita growth. This Relation can better be viewed by regression techniques. I have
applied Regression technique to measure the relation and dependency of these two factors with
each other. As GA growth measure by no. of flight operation and increase in no. of GA aircraft.
So I take these two factors as a dependent factors and GDP growth as a independent factor.

Passenger carried
YeAR GDP X(us bn $) (y)
2000 450.48 147202
2001 460.18 162473
2002 477.85 183986

2003 507.19 215629

2004 599.46 241611

2005 700.92 281322

2006 810.15 290492

2007 914.89 355811

2008 1176.89 397062

2009 1254.97 467341

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Fallowing results are found after applying Regression Technique:-

SUMMARY
OUTPUT

Regressio
n
Statistics
0.9819
Multiple R 13
0.9641
R Square 54
Adjusted R 0.9596
Square 73
Standard 21233.
error 09
Observatio
ns 10

ANOVA
Signific
df SS MS F ance F
Regressio 9.7e+1 9.7e+ 215.1 4.58e-
n 1 0 10 759 07
3.61e+ 4.51e
Residual 8 09 +08
1.01e+
Total 9 11

Standa
Coeffici rd P- Lower Upper Lower Upper
ents error t Stat value 95% 95% 95.0% 95.0%
-
17868. 18726. 0.954 0.367 - 61050 25314 61050
Intercept 11 06 184 929 25314.3 .49 .3 .49
X Variable 348.73 23.773 14.66 4.58e- 293.913 403.5 293.9 403.5
1 59 86 888 07 2 585 132 585

Pagẻ | 33
From the above results we can easily analyezed the fallowing things

R-square = 0.96, which means the 96% variation or increase in passenger carried by GA aircraft
is explaind by GDP Growth and remaining 4% are increase by other factors.so ther is strong
relationship between GDP growth and the Passenger growth in General aviation market.

Regression Line

Passenger movement = 17868.11+368.73 GDP

Recommendations:- The challenges to success in India general aviation market are

significant. But the potential is greater still, particularly for companies seeking long-term growth.
To foster and ensure the growth of General Aviation, I recommend the fallowing things that
should be applied and took in practice.

Government Policies: The Government policy in General Aviation (GA) is lacking. Today
Govt. policies towards the General aviation are not up to the mark as compare to the other
developed and developing countries. There is no concept of FBOs (Fixed Base operators )
heliports or GA terminals in the country. even though there are over 400 airports and airstrips in
the county, the bulk of the Business Aviation fleet are stationed at busy international airports in
the country and are dictated by the norm of these airports where there is heavy traffic
congestions and hence they no longer can be flown at their own will.

The Government should open up alternate airports closer to international gateways and invite
private enterprises to put up FBOs for General Aviation. This will not only ease congestions at
major airports, but also fuel growth of secondary airports in the country.

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In the case of rotor wing aviation, many heliports have been constructed by enterprises in metro
cities, but they are not permitted to receive helicopters due to operating restrictions laid down by
the Ministry of Defense. This urgently needs to be sorted out. These heliports can be used to
effectively for medical evacuation from the nearest airports.

Currently, there are at least four airports in India's metro cities which should be used for General
Aviation: Juhu Aerodrome in Mumbai, Safdarjung Airport in New Delhi, Begum pet Airport in
Hyderabad and HAL Airport in Bangalore.

Decrease in Import duty: Govt should decrease the import duty from current level of 16% for
purchasing of aircraft to attract the various industries to purchase own aircraft and foster the
growth of General Aviation.

Promoting Fractional ownership: - Fractional ownership is a popular investment in the private

air travel arena. Essentially, you purchase a partial interest in an aircraft that is operated by an
aviation company as part of its fleet. As an owner, you have the right to use any comparable
aircraft in the fleet, on demand, for a predetermined number of hours each year. Generally
speaking, fractional ownership is said to be for those who fly between 50 and 200 hours per year.
(A typical agreement might include 100 hours of flying time per year for each 1/8 share.) The
fractional provider manages the aircraft and the rest of its fleet, providing pilots, maintenance,
insurance, catering and other services. You merely call a few hours ahead of time and the
provider guarantees delivery of a plane where you want it, when you want it, to take you where
you want to go.

Laying down Strict Rules Regarding Safety and Security: - Majority of general aviation and
charter operations take place from small airports/airstrips not equipped with precision landing
aids. And not equipped with safety and security measures. So govt. has to look after the
enhancement of the safety and security in general aviation industry because there is no separate

Pagẻ | 35
Sop’s regarding safety and security in GA. So there should be a separate Sop’s has to be
maintained to ensure safe and efficient growth in GA sector

Increasing foreign funding: By increase in FDI in aircraft manufacturing and purchasing govt
can be able to ensure more investment through foreign players which leads to a sustainable
growth of General Aviation.

Retaining key and skill personnel: Government has to make sure that skilled manpower retain
in this industry and also promote the young generation to come in this sector. In the area of
General Aviation in the realm of rotor wing, companies have no option but to employ ex-
servicemen who have taken voluntary retirement and have very few years of operational flying
left. There is only one institution in India producing helicopter pilots and that too only in limited
numbers
The other area that need prime focus is the lack of awareness amongst the younger generation.
Currently there are several hundreds of young pilots sitting without employment in India. Their
main ambition is to join commercial airlines, which are believed to offer a good pay package.
They are unaware of the General Aviation market, where owners offer equally good salaries and
there is a huge shortage of trained hands.

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References:-
Web portals of:
• India Ministry of Civil Aviation
• India Directorate of Civil Aviation
• Airport Authority of India
• Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (India)
• Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation
• Orient Aviation
• Deccan Charters
• Club One Air
• Business Aviation Association Of India
• UK Civil Aviation Authority, Strategic Review of General Aviation
• Bureau of Transport and Regional economics [BTRe] 2005, General Aviation: An
Industry Overview,
• http://www.booz.com/media/uploads/Developing_a_China_Strategy_that_Delivers_Resu
lts.pdf
• Federal Aviation Administration, 2005 General Aviation and Air Taxi Activity Surveys
• www.faa.com
• www.dgca.com
• www.baai.com

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