Corona takes sheen off Wings 2020

Hyderabad: The coronavirus outbreak which is crippling the world has taken a heavy toll on Wings India 2020, Asia's largest event of civil aviation, which got underway here on Thursday.

"Wings India has now become a business event rather than a public event which it used to be. That is the major effect of novel coronavirus on the event," Usha Padhee, Joint Secretary of Union Civil Aviation Ministry, told the media here on Thursday. The event which commenced on Thursday will end on Sunday.

She further said that overseas delegates who confirmed their participation in the event could not come here. T

"We are trying our level best to maximise the outcomes of the meeting as much as possible and retain the quality of the event," she said.

The official said over 1,500 delegates were supposed to take part in the event. "But due to the novel coronavirus threat, we are expecting a third of that, mostly domestic delegates," she said. On the impact of the virus on aviation sector in India, she said the country was witnessing a 25 per cent to 30 per cent drop in inbound international visitors

There has been a drastic reduction in numbers (visitors to India) of international travellers, I was told that it has come down by 25 to 30 per cent. Because of the quarantine by every country, both inbound and outbound have got severe impact, she added.

The official said there has been a reduction in the number of domestic travellers also as people with business purpose or emergency requirements were only travelling.

Padhee however maintained that the situation was purely temporary in nature and there had been a turnaround in China, the genesis of the viral fever that killed over 3,000, "which is a good sign".

The flagship biennial event is being jointly organised by the civil aviation ministry and industry and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) at Begumpet Airport here.