India’s economy has rapidly risen to a stature as one of the most respected in the world within the past decade. One of the key hubs for global business, the country records roughly 2.3 million aircraft movements annually. But that number could be much higher very soon. India’s burgeoning BizAv status has yet to fully take off. The tailwinds are there and the demand is growing, but there are still a few hurdles to overcome. If it all pans out, India may very well be the epicenter for BizAv by 2030. Here’s why.
1. Strong presence of high net worth individuals
The biggest barrier to private aviation is and always has been the cost. BizAv is accessible only with a certain level of wealth.
India’s population of high net worth individuals ranks among the top in the world, and it’s only growing bigger. The number of high net worth individuals is expected to grow by an astounding 39% by 2023, showcasing a region of the world rife with wealth. This figure accounts for politicians, business executives, and independently wealthy individuals who have not only the means to use private aviation but also a reason to.
2. Position as a global economic hub
Delhi and Mumbai are two business and medical epicenters in India. Unsurprisingly, these two regions are also expected to witness the highest demand for BizAv in the coming years. With India serving as a global business hub connecting Europe, the United Arab Emirates, and Asia, business aviation traffic in and out of the country is booming.
With rising infrastructure and growing importance in the globalized economy, aviation growth in India is virtually inevitable. That’s why it’s no surprise that jet manufacturer Bombardier expects India’s own BizAv fleet to grow tenfold by 2033. If that prediction comes to fruition, India will represent the largest private aviation market in the world.
3. High presence of MRO facilities and operations
In addition to building out its own BizAv fleet, India is making the country an inviting prospect for fleets across the world. The country has rapidly and extensively built up its aviation maintenance and repair operations (MRO) to the point of being a world leader. In doing so, it’s setting the stage for rollout of its own fleet.
Mumbai is home to the only business-exclusive aviation airport in India, making it a convenient destination for jet owners to book MRO services for their jets. When they do, they have pick of more than 100 non-scheduled operators that provide ground handling, aircraft maintenance, MRO, and more.
What’s holding India back?
With India primed to become the world’s BizAv powerhouse, there are still factors standing in its way. Infrastructure continues to be a problem, as the country continues to expand rapidly. On the political side of things, import and customs standardization for BizAv still needs work, as taxation rates on BizAv are high. And with the government largely focused on civilian aviation, scheduled airlines are still given preference to private aviation at major airports.
Will India achieve its status as the BizAv powerhouse of the world? More than likely. The barriers it faces are barriers to other industries as well, which means they’ll likely be solved sooner rather than later. When they are, India will have no trouble being the epicenter for BizAv for the foreseeable future.
When an aircraft suffers a fatal crash, it’s a terrible tragedy. There are so few air travel fatalities in a given year that it immediately becomes a front-page headline. But when the same model jet is involved in successive fatal crashes, it becomes much more than a tragedy. It’s a scandal. That’s exactly what Boeing is facing right now as its 737 MAX 8 jetliner sits halted on the tarmac worldwide.
The situation so far
In October 2018, Lion Air Flight 610 crashed in Indonesia, killing 189. Then, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crashed in March, killing all 157 people onboard. Between these two devastating crashes, several other reported issues with Boeing’s 737 MAX 8 airliner were reported, thankfully with less catastrophic results. Industry professionals and investigative journalists quickly found the links between them: the 737 MAX 8, a tripped sensor module, and a nosedive pilots struggled to correct.
Fast forward to today and Boeing 737 MAX 8 jets are grounded worldwide. The cause? It all boils down to an issue with the aircraft’s Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) and Boeing’s irresponsible approach to training pilots on how to correct premature sensor triggers.
How is private aviation affected?
The grounding of a commercial aircraft doesn’t usually have much bearing on private aviation, other than to call into question the risk of other affected models from that manufacturer. Grounding Boeing’s 737 MAX 8 is a slightly different scenario.
Despite its commercial status, there are actually twenty-one 737 MAX 8 jets currently on the assembly line for private owners. After this debacle with the 737 MAX 8, private buyers can opt not to take delivery of the jet and instead sell their place on the delivery list to someone else.
There are also a number of private 737 MAX 8 jets already on the tarmac in the form of Boeing’s rebranded Boeing Business Jet (BBJ) MAX. A majority of these jets fly out of Asia-Pacific markets and, like their commercial counterparts, remain grounded until there’s a resolution for the MCAS issue.
Looking at the broader picture
Despite the recent prolific press on Boeing’s failures and the devastation they’ve caused, it’s perhaps the best time to reflect on the safety of air travel, specifically in private aviation. While aircraft crashes are usually front-page news, especially when they involve fatalities, what we don’t hear about are the hundreds of privately chartered flights that take off and land daily all around the world.
It bears reminding that private jets are often chartered by pilots with tens of thousands of hours of commercial flying experience, in aircraft much larger than those in the BizAv market. As a result, there are fewer crashes and fatalities on private charters every year than on scheduled commercial flights.
Hopefully the worst of Boeing’s 737 MAX 8 tragedies are behind us and Boeing has learned an extremely important lesson in the wake of these fatal crashes. It’s expected that a fix for grounded 737 MAX 8 jets will hit the market soon. Certainly, it’s a situation that’s front and center in the mind of all jet owners and anyone stepping onboard a Boeing aircraft. But equally as important to realize is that this is an opportunity to make air travel safer now and for the future.
The expert jet brokers at L & L International are here to help you acquire the perfect jet. Need to sell your jet? We can assist with that, too.
Contact the private aviation professionals online, at
sales@L-Lint.com, or at
+1 (305) 754-3313.
