Fuel supply infrastructure providing platform for growth in aviation
23 Feb 2007
Kochi: An extensive network of fuel supply infrastructure has now provided the platform for airlines to fly to locations hitherto considered remote, says GC Daga, director, marketing, Indian Oil. According to Daga, infrastructure is the force that drove economic growth to dizzy heights.
Speaking at the international aviation conference, which began here on Thursday, Daga quoted a study by the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA), which said that Indian airports handled 51 million domestic passengers and 22.4 million international passengers in 2005-06, as compared to 25.74 million domestic passengers and 13.29 million international passengers in 1999-2000.
In the first three months of the current fiscal, Daga said, domestic traffic alone had increased by 48 per cent on a year-on-year basis. In the next five years, domestic air traffic was set to grow about 25 per cent annually and international traffic by 15 per cent.
Cargo growth had been sporadic, Daga said, probably because of infrastructure constraints. He pointed out that much of the growth in the domestic travel was on account of leisure travel, with smaller airports contributing a lot to it.
Daga pointed out that the operating environment for businesses today was a dynamic one, as customers had access to information, and hence, to a wide range of choices. Accordingly, expectations were on the rise as well. Creating a meaningful differentiation, as well as a unique brand experience, in such an environment would be a major challenge, said Daga.
