Edge

Guest Writer

India's growing air charter market

P K Ratta

In spite of the rapid economic growth and technological advancements in our country, the air travel sector is still waiting for a major change. While the government is positively working towards encouraging growth in the aviation industry by bringing drastic changes in policies, current infrastructure is hardly capable to handle growth.

The unprecedented growth seen in the last few years in scheduled and non-scheduled operations is creating chaos at major airports, as the present infrastructure is unable to handle the growth seen in the number of aircraft operating in and out of these airports. The problems of road transportation in metros is also reaching alarming levels, owing to growing volume of traffic and infrastructure not being proportionately developed.

While it takes only two hours to fly from Delhi to Mumbai, it may take similar time to drive from Mumbai airport to the city. While inter-city travel by helicopter in western countries is not unusual, in India it is still a dream since there is no proper infrastructure to support such services. With the setting up of new factories and plants in places like Silvassa, Daman, Vapi, Nasik and other smaller cities on the outskirts of Maharashtra, easy accessibility in terms of a quick and safe mode of transport has become the need of the hour. Many corporates, in order to meet their travel needs to these places, have acquired their own aircraft and helicopters. Some have even looked towards private air charter operators for their domestic and international travel.

If harnessed well, the biggest advantage is that the chairman or CEO of a company with its corporate office in Mumbai can decide to charter a helicopter to travel to his nearby plant at nine in the morning and return by 12 noon to attend to his other commitments. Similarly, with a business jet aircraft, he can easily plan to travel to three or four cities in a day and still be back for his work the following day. Breakfasting in Mumbai, travelling to three or four different parts of the country during the day on business and returning to Mumbai for dinner will no longer be a dream.

Unfortunately, though there has been a substantial increase in the number of private business jet aircraft and helicopters, no single player has entered the air charter market (non-scheduled operations) in a dedicated way. Most of the air charter operators operate with one or two aircraft or helicopters and are not able to optimise their fleet utilisation, as it is not perceived as a serious business for them. It is time that 'air charter' is seen as a dedicated business, which would need substantial investments.

For customers, the cost at times becomes the limiting factor for the use of charter services. This is primarily due to lack of awareness amongst customers that the premium price of the service saves valuable executive time that is otherwise lost in travel. But the culture is changing. Time consciousness is gaining momentum with Indian executives and the growing demand for connectivity to smaller cities and remote areas is increasing every day. These developments will definitely create a demand for the quickest mode of transportation to these areas, making the growth of private charter operators inevitable.

Some statistical data will reveal the status of such operations in our country today. In the United States of America, there are over 11,000 helicopters and thousands of private aircraft in commercial or private use. In India, with a population of approximately over 110 crore, we have just around 175 helicopters and approximately 100 aircraft being commercially or privately used. The use of aircraft charter services through helicopters has a distinct advantage over scheduled operators. It provides the fastest available mode of transport on short notice, the quickest accessibility to remote areas, no waiting time at check-in counters and at airports for connecting flights and hence is a boon to the time-conscious customer.

Helicopters can be used for various other purposes, like fire-fighting, surveillance, law and order, road traffic control, electronic media reporting, construction work aids, shuttle services between airport and town. It is time that these diversified roles of helicopters are recognised and the government and other agencies start using these resources more effectively. The survival and growth of the air charter market in India will much depend on high utilisation of the available fleet which would allow operators to reduce rates and thus make these services affordable to a larger section of our population and encourage the use of helicopters for various purposes. Also, immediate improvement in infrastructure, more players entering into this market with a sizeable fleet, relaxation on taxes, airport charges, and liberal policies by government agencies will encourage investments in this sector.

The author is CEO, (Aviation Division), Raymond