Indian Carriers Place Order For 1,700 Aircraft, Aim To Expand Fleet To 3,500 By 2047: Civil Aviation Minister
India, the world's third-largest domestic aviation market, is poised to soon become the third-largest overall air passenger market.
Domestic carriers have placed orders for 1,700 planes, with an aim to grow their fleet to 3,500 by 2047, said Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu.
"India is not just flying but soaring... Our aircraft fleet has doubled to 850 today, and we have already placed orders of more than 1,700 aircraft — which is the biggest in the world — aiming for a fleet of 3,500 by 2047," he said, while addressing Wings India 2026 Curtain Raiser on Friday.
India, the world's third-largest domestic aviation market, is poised to soon become the third-largest overall air passenger market, the minister said.
Domestic flights have surged to 11 lakh annually from six lakh in 2014. "This means that 60 more flights are being handled every hour," he added.
This is in line with India's airport network expansion — from 74 to 160 over the last decade. In the coming five years, 50 new airports are expected to be launched under the regional connectivity scheme, UDAN, further connecting remote regions of the country.
"In fact, we are very much ready to add 200 more airports over the next two decades. All major metros are preparing for its second generation of world-class airports. After Jewar (Delhi-NCR), Navi Mumbai (Mumbai) and Parandur (Chennai), now Bengaluru has proposed for a second airport," Naidu said.
The minister further added that the domestic drone ecosystem is booming, with over 11,000 drones being registered annually. "We are also working towards air taxi trails, drone corridors and a regulatory sandbox to support new-age startups," Naidu said.
Calling on the industry to make in India, Naidu said that while global original equipment manufacturers such as Airbus and Boeing are locally sourcing aerospace components and services worth around $2 billion annually, the goal is to take that figure to $10 billion in the coming days and "build on structural parts, avionics and electronics right here in India".
"Our skies are full of opportunity, our policies are stable, and our partnerships are sincere...come co-create the future of aviation with us," Naidu said, addressing the global players who gathered at the event.
Naidu also declared the theme of Wings India 2026 – 'Indian Aviation: Paving the Future - from Design to Deployment, Manufacturing to Maintenance, Inclusivity to Innovation and Safety to Sustainability'.
Wings India 2026, the next edition of the much-awaited biennial civil aviation event, will be held in Hyderabad from Jan 28–31. It will bring together key stakeholders including airlines, manufacturers, investors, state governments, airport developers, cargo and logistics players, skill development agencies, and financial institutions from across the globe.
