India's aerospace boom is reflected in the nation having its biggest-ever presence at the show.

No fewer than 18 private Indian companies are represented at the International Suppliers Center.  Services range from engineering and design support to manufacture of high-precision aerospace components and assemblies.

On the agenda for these Indian attendees are partnerships, joint ventures and technical tie-ups - and they are joined at the show by a delegation from the country's defence ministry.

Airbus forecasts that in the period to 2030, Indian airlines will require more than 1,000 new passenger aircraft - worth $145 billion. This is based on a projected traffic growth rate of 7.2% a year, outstripping both the pacy 5.9% envisioned for the Asia-Pacific region as a whole and the world average of 4.8%.

Underlying the airframer's optimism is India's growing urbanisation and population concentrations, allied with an expanding middle class and the expectation that in 2030 the nation's economy will be the world's fourth largest.

 A310 Air India

Air India Airbus A310-300 VT-EJJ

Courtesy Airbus 

In the defence market, meanwhile, Indian spending on foreign arms and equipment is expected to reach $54 billion during 2011-2015.

The nation is pursuing a "buy-and-make" strategy, which requires a 30% "offset" provision to apply to all contracts exceeding Rs3 billion ($54 million) in value, ensuring reinvestment in the national aerospace industry by winning contractors.

Indo-German ties are such that the ILA host nation is India's largest trading partner in Europe. Bilateral annual trade hit €18 billion ($23 million) last year.

Tata Motors subsidiaries Tata Advanced Materials and TAL Manufacturing Solutions and Rangsons Electronics are among the names on the roll-call of Indian companies exhibiting here.

Check out our complete coverage for the ILA Airshow

Source: Flight Daily News