Boeing sources manufacturing, IT services worth $1 bn from India

Image for representation.
| Photo Credit: AP

India’s manufacturing capability has ‘truly transformed in the last 10 years’ and the country has been trying to catch up quickly with other geographies that have been on manufacturing journey in the last 50 years, said Boeing India president Salil Gupte.

“India, the third-largest civil aviation market in the world, is a market like no other and a possibility like no other. The country has huge aspirations to develop,” Mr. Gupte said.

Boeing India currently helps its parent source supplies worth $1 billion per year from India of which 66% is actual manufacturing and the remaining is software and services.

“The vast majority of our sourcing is now manufacturing, which has been growing fourfold in the last six years, and the country is now fast catching up with the rest of the world in manufacturing,’‘ he explained.

Boeing India president Salil Gupte. Photo: Special Arrangement

India’s aerospace exports are expected to cross $5 billion by 2025 from $1.5 billion currently. Boeing has more than 300 supplier partners, including 70 MSMEs, in India while it has in excess of 20,000 supplier partners globally.

To a query on the aerospace industry’s expectation from the upcoming Budget, Mr. Gupte said if the government did something to rationalise taxation around MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) and aviation fuel, India would be the ‘best place’ for the aerospace sector.

Boeing works with DGCI, AAI, Min of aviation for airspace improvement.

Boeing India has completed the first phase of a study project in association with the DGCA, the Airports Authority of India and Ministry of Civil Aviation to improve the airspace safety in the country.

India’s airspace would have 2,200 aircraft by 2040 from about 600 currently, and the country has to do a lot of work in preparation to manage such air traffic, said  Krishnakumar Badrinath, director and chief engineer, Boeing India software engineering, BIETC

“In the first phase of the study, we considered the importance of decongesting the Delhi-Mumbai corridor by creating additional flying and using military airspace and reducing the ground traffic congestion, etc. The idea is to align India’s airspace under the security and safety norms of the International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA),” he added.