Airports Council International (ACI) World has stated that the Indian government’s move to pursue further private investment in airport development will better enable the country to respond to the growing demand for air services.
The key context for discussion at the Global Aviation Summit in Mumbai – organized by the Ministry of Civil Aviation, the Government of India, and with the support of ACI World – was that the global demand for air services continues to grow rapidly.
According to ACI World Airport Traffic Forecasts 2018-2040, India is expected to be the second-fastest-growing country, with more than 50 million passengers per annum from 2017-2040, with 6.8% growth.
“In order for India to cope with surging demand in air transportation, a clear plan for building critical aviation infrastructure is required,” said Angela Gittens, director general, ACI World. “With that in mind, it is good to see that the Indian government has moved to undertake a second phase of privatization.
“Existing airport infrastructure in the country, and in many mature markets worldwide, will not be able to handle the expected growth, so substantial investment is required, soon, to allow the aviation industry to meet growing demand.”
ACI World claims that private investment has not only been an important tool for infrastructure development in India, but has also proven to provide an increase in the level of service, customer experience and passenger satisfaction.
“Private investment in airports around the world has proven crucial in improving the customer experience and airports are placing a greater emphasis on this in business planning. This is a highly competitive market and airports understand the importance of benchmarking their service quality performance against the industry,” added Gittens.