GMR seeks to make Hyd as aerospace hub

To set up high quality aerospace training complex at Hyderabad airport with support of Moroccan government

Hyderabad: Stating that Hyderabad city is endowed with requisite qualities to become the country’s hub for aerospace and defence manufacturing, G M Rao, founder and Chairman, GMR Group on Tuesday promised that his infrastructure group would do its own bit to convert city into such a hub.

“GMR Group is also doing its bit for the benefit of aerospace and defence sectors, and more so for making Hyderabad as their hub. We have developed one-of-its-kind aerospace cum multi-product SEZ, with access to runway at Hyderabad Airport,” Rao said while delivering his address at 65th Annual General Meeting of Aeronautical Society of India (AeSI), a professional body for aeronautics, aviation and aerospace.

Rao, who is also the current president of AeSI, further explained that the biggest challenge for growth of aerospace sector in the country was lack of skilled workforce and to address this, GMR Group would establish a high quality training hub at Hyderabad airport.

“For this, our team with the help of a French multi-national Safran has visited the world class aerospace training centre located in Morocco country. We studied in detail as how the establishment of the institute with the support of the Moroccan government has successfully made the country as destination of choice for aerospace companies,” he added.

According to Rao, Morocco’s aerospace and defense sector is one of the major contributors to its GDP. “We have the same vision for the Hyderabad and Telangana. In fact, we have developed relationship with the Safran team in Morocco, and they are ready to guide us in creating the aerospace training institute,” he said, seeking the support of Telangana government for this purpose.

Pointing that India was poised to become world’s third largest aviation market by the year 2020, he said demand for new aircraft would increase significantly over the next few years. “The industry forecasts a demand for commercial aircraft worth $100 billion in the next two decades,” he said.

Meanwhile, Telangana IT Minister K T Rama Rao, who also addressed the inaugural session of the AESI AGM, said that the TS government would provide necessary support to GMR Group for setting up the training hub.

Explaining that the government had already allocated additional 1,000 acres near the existing aerospace park, he said a proposal was also under consideration to set up a similar park on the northern side of the city.

New aviation policy on the anvil: Raju
Hyderabad: Union Civil Aviation Minister P Ashok Gajapathi Raju on Tuesday said the central government was in the process of formulating a new national aviation policy. However, the Minister did not give any timeline for announcement of the policy.

Talking to reporters on the sidelines of the AeSI AGM here, he further said turnaround plan for Air India is already in place. Now, it is for the management of the airlines and its staff to execute the plan successfully, he added.

The Minister also said that some states like Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, had sent positive response to the central government’s proposal for reducing tax on aviation turbine fuel. “Some states are delaying their response because consumption of the fuel is already high there,” he said.