Patel: Hitting out

Mumbai, May 8: Union civil aviation minister Praful Patel took aim at Airbus Industrie at the launch ceremony of Kingfisher Airlines to give the France-based company a piece of his mind on the controversy sparked by Air-India’s order for 50 Boeing aircraft.

?They (Air-India) know what’s good for them. We don’t need any advice on how to run our airline,? Patel said, adding ?I hope people are listening to us.?

Without naming any aircraft maker, Patel’s statement created a flutter in the audience, which included representatives of leading manufacturers.

Airbus vice-president Nigel Howard, who had called for a CVC inquiry a day after the A-I board opted for 50 Boeing jets, was among the audience and was clearly taken aback by the minister’s plainspeaking. Howard was later quoted by a news agency as having said: ?We have total confidence in the selection process of the aircraft.?

Also in the audience was Airbus’s and Howard’s main rival, Boeing senior vice-president (international sales), Dinesh Keskar, who was all smiles when the minister spoke at the ceremony to launch Kingfisher Airlines, whose fleet will have 33 new Airbus aircraft with an option to buy 20 more.

The ?aspirations of the young are different?, Patel said. ?That’s why we have to change?.

?The coming decade will be the decade of civil aviation,? Patel promised, saying the Indian aviation sector can only go ?higher and higher?.

However, the minister said the government-owned Air-India and Indian Airlines have to be freed of their shackles. ?How do you expect them to grow with tight-fisted control as others decide on their behalf?? he asked.

India’s civil aviation sector must expand, Patel asserted and said there is a big role for public and private-sector cooperation. ?There are only 180 civilian aircraft in India. Look at America. They have 7,000 civilian aircraft. Europe has 5,000,? pointed out the Union minister.

The Indian civil aviation sector is growing by 20 per cent and, in the next five years, the number of aircraft will more than double from 180 to 400. The government plans to sell 25 per cent of the equity of Indian Airlines and Air-India in the current financial year to fund purchases of new aircraft.

The government is also funding a plan to modernise the New Delhi and Mumbai airports at a cost of Rs 3,500 crore.

The civil aviation minister also spoke of Air-India and Indian Airlines giving private airlines like Kingfisher Airlines severe competition. ?Dr Mallya, they’ll give you a run for your money,? he said.

Kingfisher Airlines and Indian Airlines have signed a three year memorandum of understanding that would fetch the latter nearly Rs 130 crore.

Later chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh acknowledged the new confidence in Patel’s demeanour. ?He sounds so different and is a totally different person now,? Deshmukh said.