India now world's 3rd-largest domestic aviation market, says PM Modi
Prime Minister
Narendra Modi
on Monday said India has emerged as the world's third-largest domestic aviation market, driven by rapid growth in passenger numbers and transformational policy interventions like the UDAN scheme.
PM Modi said India is investing heavily in world-class airport infrastructure to meet the growing demand for air travel. Highlighting the rapid expansion of the aviation sector, he noted that Indian carriers have already placed orders for over 2,000 aircraft — and 'this is just the beginning,' he added.
Addressing the International Air Transport Association (IATA) summit — being held in India after four decades — Modi said, 'Our airlines are achieving double-digit growth. The success of the UDAN scheme is a golden chapter in Indian civil aviation.'
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By 2030, he said, the government envisions that UDAN — aimed at regional connectivity — will have benefited nearly 50 crore Indians.
Highlighting how much has changed over the past four decades, Modi said, 'Today's India is filled with self-confidence and is a symbol of inclusive development. The speed of innovation and technological upgradation is unprecedented.'
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He said discussions at the IATA summit would provide a 'new direction to the global aviation sector,' and pitched India as a natural leader in shaping the future of air travel.
Laying out key pillars of India's aviation strength, Modi said:
India is a vast market driven by rising aspirations
Homegrown innovators are leading breakthroughs in clean energy
The country's talent pool and young demography is fueling technological progress
And civil aviation has seen 'incredible change' in recent years
'Humans today are taking space flights and dreaming of commercialising them. This shows the scale of innovation around us — and India is not just participating, but leading in several areas,' he added.
India to have 350 airports by 2047
India plans to add 50 more airports in the next five years, aiming to scale up to over 350 airports by 2047 as part of the Viksit Bharat vision, Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu said at
IATA Global Aviation Summit 2025
.
'Our domestic traffic has surged 30%, international traffic has risen from 55 million to 72 million, and in April 2025 alone, domestic air traffic grew by 10% — outpacing the global growth rate of 8%,' Naidu said, underlining India's accelerating demand for air travel.
Calling it a "clear invitation" to global airlines, Naidu urged the international aviation community to tap into India's fast-growing regional air transport market. 'So let us go ahead for flight to India, fly in India, and fly with India,' he said.
The minister also pitched India as a future global hub for Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) services. 'India is perfectly positioned to become a global MRO hub. We're targeting a $4 billion share of the global MRO market by 2031,' Naidu said. To support this ambition, the government has allowed FDI through the automatic route and introduced transparent, royalty-free land allotment for MRO facilities.
Looking ahead, Naidu said India's aviation sector could evolve into a $10 billion industry over the next 10 to 15 years, driven by domestic manufacturing of aircraft structures, electronic systems, and avionics.
He highlighted the operationalisation of two key assembly lines — the C295 military transport aircraft and the H130 and H125 helicopters — as evidence of the Make in India push in aerospace.
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