At a time when India is reshaping its civil aviation landscape, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called on global investors to take part in the country’s fast-growing aviation ecosystem.
Addressing Wings India 2026 virtually, the Prime Minister said India will expand its airport network from the current 160 to more than 400 airports by 2047, when the nation completes 100 years of Independence. He urged investors to explore opportunities across freight forwarding, warehousing, express logistics and e-commerce.
The aviation event opened under a sombre mood following a plane crash in Maharashtra that killed Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar and others. Reflecting this, Union Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu and his deputy Murlidhar Mohol did not attend the inaugural session. However, a coordinated aerial display by UK pilots Mark Jefferies, Chris Burkett, Peter Wells and Chris Heames, along with a drone show, lit up the skies and highlighted the industry’s growth story.
“India is placing great emphasis on aircraft design, manufacturing and maintenance, repair and operations ecosystem. Today, India is a large manufacturer and supplier of aircraft parts. We are starting to manufacture military and transport aircraft domestically and are moving towards civil aircraft manufacturing,” the Prime Minister said.
He added that India is becoming a major force in global aviation and stressed the importance of self-reliance. “We must strengthen the path of self-reliance, which will also help companies considering investing in India,” he said.
“The day is not far when Electric Vertical Take-off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft, designed and manufactured in India, will give a new direction to the aviation sector. This technology can significantly reduce travel time,” he observed.
The Prime Minister said the next phase of the UDAN scheme is being prepared to strengthen regional and affordable air connectivity. He noted that India is now the world’s 3rd-largest domestic aviation market.
Passenger traffic is rising rapidly and Indian airlines have placed orders for more than 1,500 aircraft. He said over 1.5 crore passengers have flown on routes that did not exist before the UDAN scheme.
On sustainability, he said India is working actively on sustainable aviation fuel and is moving towards becoming a major producer and exporter of green aviation fuel in the coming years.
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