Thaindian News

Hyderabad, March 4 (IANS) Boeing, a leading aircraft maker, Thursday predicted 10 percent growth in India’s civil aviation market in 2010 based on signs of recovery from the slump in the air passenger traffic last year.
Dinesh A. Keskar, president of Boeing India, told reporters at India Aviation 2010 that airlines in India had started making profits and the trend was likely to continue through the year.

The domestic passenger traffic has recovered from the 2008-2009 slump. The figures of January (4.09 million passengers) show a recovery. “If this trend continues, the year will end with 48 million passengers, a growth of 10 percent,” Keskar said.

He said India’s domestic passenger traffic was reverting to long-term growth trends and pointed out that the recent domestic capacity adjustments have brought supply and demand into better balance.

Domestic capacity has stabilised with potential for growth going forward. In 2009 the overall domestic market passenger traffic grew by 7.5 percent in 2009.

“The airline profitability stabilised in the fourth quarter of 2009 as airlines better managed loads and fares. The airlines are extending this profitability into the lean season,” the Boeing India president said.

Low-cost carriers are driving the Indian domestic seat growth. The economic slowdown has contributed to corporate travellers constituting over 35 percent of the traffic on low cost carriers, up from 10 percent a year ago.

Keskar said India would require 1,000 airplanes by 2028 valued at $100 billion. The fleet will go up from 330 in 2008 to 1,290 in 2028. He said the potential for the aviation market would be high as the country will be the second biggest economy after China in terms of GDP growth by 2028.

Airbus Industrie too put India’s requirement for aircraft to over 1000 by 2028.