The country’s premier aerospace and defence exhibition, Aero India 2021, takes off in Bengaluru amid the COVID-19 pandemic with buzz around “Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan” and “Make in India” push.
With a combination of both physical and virtual exhibition, the 13th edition of the biennial international event at Air Force Station Yelahanka will be the world’s first hybrid aerospace show, officials said. A negative COVID-19 RT-PCR test report (dated January 31, 9 am or later) is a must to attend the three-day event, where each day only 3,000 visitors will be allowed at the flight display venue in view of the pandemic. As many as 601 exhibitors – 523 Indian and 78 foreign – and 14 countries have confirmed participation, they said. Companies are showcasing their capabilities, latest technologies, solutions, products and services at the show.
Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) will exhibit its latest defence technologies and demonstrate many systems.
“We will continue to support ‘Make-in-India’ policy and ‘Aatma-Nirbhar Bharat Mission’ of the Indian government, to promote indigenous production, knowledge transfer and global industrial cooperation, to facilitate Indian export of high- end defence technology,” said Eli Hefets, Corporate Regional Director, India, Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd.
Director & Industry lead for Aerospace & Defense in India, Dassault Systemes, Ravikiran Pothukuchi said the aerospace & defence sector in India is at an inflection point, given the large scale modernisation and indigenisation programmes being undertaken by the government.
Alex Zino, Executive Vice President Business Development & Future Programmes (Defence), Rolls-Royce said:”We recognise that Indias defence requirements are evolving, making indigenous development of modern defence hardware and technology a top priority for the Indian government”.
“Aligned with the Indian governments Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan and the Make in India initiative, we look forward to participating in Aero India 2021 and reinforcing our commitment to supporting the growth of an indigenous defence manufacturing ecosystem while continuing to deliver our best capabilities to support the Indian MoD and Services, saidWilliam (Bill) Blair, vice president and chief executive, Lockheed Martin India.
Among the key attractions will be flight display by ‘Surya Kiran’ aircraft and ‘Sarang’ helicopters.
