Leading US Aviation Official to Speak at International Symposium in New Delhi

The United States Assistant Secretary for Aviation and International Affairs, Mr. Karan Bhatia, will address the forthcoming Low Cost Airline Symposium at the Taj Palace Hotel in New Delhi on 5th and 6th July.

Assistant Secretary Bhatia holds responsibility for licensing of U.S. and foreign airlines, formulating U.S. international aviation policy, and the administration of programs designed to promote competition in the U.S. aviation system. 

He will give a presentation on aviation deregulation, providing a global context for the liberalisation process currently underway in India. 

The Delhi symposium, which is expected to attract 300 delegates from around the world, will focus on the prospects for liberalisation in the Indian subcontinent, the potential for the development of the low cost airline model and the implications for associated sectors such as airports, tourism, financial institutions and suppliers.

The event, which is being organised by the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation will be the first international aviation conference to be held in India since the new government was formed, and takes place as the privatisation process for Delhi and Mumbai Airports gets underway.

Managing Director of the Centre, Peter Harbison, said, “despite enormous potential, the aviation and tourism industries of the Indian subcontinent have for many years been the world’s great under-performers. This looks set to change as deregulation spreads across the region.” 

“The process of liberalisation will inevitably stimulate entry by new airlines, many if not most of them following the low cost model which has gripped the imagination in other parts of the world. Low cost airlines could be the key to meeting the travel aspirations of the rapidly growing middle class.”

Other confirmed speakers include senior officers of low cost airlines from India, the Gulf, Asia and Australia, including:

Air Arabia: Adel Ali, CEO 
Air Asia: Tony Fernandes, CEO 
Air Deccan: Captain Gopinath, Managing Director 
Virgin Blue Airlines: David Huttner, Head of Strategy

Leading executives from major carriers from the subcontinent will provide their perspective on the low cost model and how it affects them. Participants include:

Air India: V.K.Verma, Commercial Director (will chair a session) 
Air Sahara: U.K.Bose, CEO 
SriLankan Airlines: Peter Hill, CEO

Low cost airlines and the traffic growth that they generate are becoming increasingly important issues for airports, that have to consider how best to accommodate this new type of operation. The Managing Director of Malaysia Airports Holdings (Bashir Ahmed) and the Assistant Director of the new budget carrier terminal at Singapore Changi Airport (Tan Sek Yong) will discuss these issues.