Article Posted on : - Oct 14, 2008

A woman participant walks past a hoarding at the venue of India Aviation 2008 at Begumpet in Hyderabad on Monday. PTI Photo

HYDERABAD (BNS): The arrival of world’s largest passenger aircraft, Airbus A-380 from France, which can cover three-fourth of a football ground would be one of the biggest attractions at the first `India Aviation 2008’ starting Wednesday.

The aircraft will be on both static and flying display at the event.

Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel will inaugurate the first ever International Exhibition and Conference on Civil Aviation at the Begumpet Airport on October 15.

Andhra Pradesh chief minister Dr YS Rajasekhara Reddy will be the chief guest. The three-day event is jointly organised by the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).

It will be the only event on civil aviation sector in India that will be hosted at an airport.

The `India Aviation 2008’ will showcase the development of Indian Civil Aviation industry at a time when India is becoming a major aviation player. The event will highlight the history, growth and present stature of Indian civil aviation.

The opening ceremony will be supplemented with spectacular fly-past by Surya Kiran and Sarang helicopters from Indian Air Force, followed by parasailing, para jumping and hot air ballooning by Aero Club of India.

One new Airbus 319 will be inducted to Air India fleet, coinciding with the closure of the inaugural function.

More than 150 exhibitors from leading aviation and allied industries from around the world will participate -- Airbus, Boeing, EADS, HAL, BEL, Rolls Royce, Engine Alliance, Cessna Aircraft Company, Bell Helicopter Textron, ATR and Bombardier to name a few. Major airlines such as Air India, Kingfisher, Jet Airways and Spicejet will also demonstrate their profile and services.

The airfield area of the airport will display 37 International and domestic aircraft from the world’s largest A380 to Pushpak, the smallest aeroplane. The composition of display includes Boeing 777, Airbus 340-400, Learjet, Global Express, Challenger, CRJ900, Gulfstream, Illusion, Hawkerbeechcraft, Cessnas and Helicopters. There will be daily flying display and customer demonstration flights. The Exhibition would open to public on October 18.

The preparations at the venue are in full swing for construction of hospitality chalets and air-conditioned pavilions, covering an area of over 12000 sq metres.

The event also aims at providing a platform for meeting of various aviation industries in order to forge partnership alliances and transfer of technology. Arrangements for meeting between companies as well as companies and government officials have been made during the event.

In fact it is expected that some companies could make major business announcements to take advantage of the huge presence of both international and domestic media persons.

With the presence of aviation majors, United States being the partner country and Andhra Pradesh as host state, the event will pave the way for India becoming a major aviation hub in the near future as well as establishing the event as a major air show in the world.

An exclusive open house interactive session would allow more than 35 CEOs from major aviation companies to discuss their future plans and policy issues before the Civil Aviation Minister and other senior officials of his ministry.

Civil aviation ministerial delegations from 25 countries have been invited to participate in the event.

A theme pavilion showcasing the past, present and future of Indian civil aviation will welcome the visitors at the exhibition venue, where rare photographs and models would be on display.