Delay in announcement of dates and venue is said to have delayed the bookings

While concerns have been raised that the delay in announcement of the venue and date of the Aero India 2019 has resulted in a dip in exhibitor registration, organisers of the airshow are confident that the projected space booking would surpass that of the previous shows.

According to organisers, 25,051 sqm of space has already been booked by both Indian and foreign exhibitors till December 11 at the Air Force Station Yelahanka, the venue of the airshow which will be held between February 20 and 24. During the past two editions (2015 and 2017) of the airshow, 24,569 and 25,228 sqm of space were booked by exhibitors. For the 2019 edition, organisers have projected that 28,973 sqm of space would be booked by exhibitors. “Aero India 2019 is receiving massive response from exhibitors.

With two months still to go, the projected space booking is surpassing the space booking of previous air shows,” organisers said through its Twitter handle.

Aero India 2019 is receiving massive response from exhibitors. With two months still to go, the booking space is on the rise­.

With still a couple of months left for the airshow, organisers are confident that it would beat the previous edition figures. The 2017 edition of Aero India saw the participation of 549 companies (270 Indian and 279 foreign). For the 2019 show, so far 288 exhibitors (both Indian and foreign) have booked space. 

Defence and aviation experts have attributed the low turnout to the delay in announcement of dates There was a delay in the announcement by the Ministry of Defence with speculations rife that the biannual airshow could be shifted out of Bangalore.

However, speculation was put to rest with the Ministry of Defence announcing that the biannual air show would indeed stay put in Bangalore. So far 20 aircraft confirmed their participation in the airshow. During the previous edition a total of 72 aircraft participated in the show.

PM To Inaugurate Show

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to inaugurate the airshow. In 2015, he became the first prime minister to inaugurate the airshow which is traditionally done by the country’s defence minister. US-based astronaut (Indian origin) Sunita Williams is also expected to participate in the airshow