Airports authority, BEL tie up for mutual support in airport business projects globally

National airports operator AAI on Tuesday said it has inked a pact with Navratna defence PSU Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) to work in close cooperation in the civil aviation space in the Asia Pacific and other parts of the globe.

National airports operator AAI on Tuesday said it has inked a pact with Navratna defence PSU Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) to work in close cooperation in the civil aviation space in the Asia Pacific and other parts of the globe. Under the partnership, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) in the role of development partner will provide its domain expertise to the defence PSU in the execution of various Ministry of External Affairs projects outside India, the AAI said in a release. Both the organisations will work in close cooperation with each other in the field of civil aviation in present and in future projects being handled by BEL, it said. AAI's memorandum of understanding (MoU) with BEL will provide a platform for "collaborative development and support for both the organisations to address the emerging airport business globally, including in the Asiua-Pacifc region", the release said. The MoU was signed by Sanjai Kumar Singhal, General Manager (Business Development), AAI, and Manoj Kumar, Executive Director (National Marketing), RO Delhi, BEL on Tuesday at the AAI's headquarters at Rajiv Gandhi Bhawan, New Delhi

AAI Chairman Arvind Singh and BEL Chairman and Managing Director M V Gowtama and senior management of the two PSUs attended the ceremony through video conferencing, said the release. Singh exuded optimism that the partnership will be a game-changer in the Indian aviation space in the years to come and also said that the manufacturing of communication, navigation and surveillance (CNS) equipment in India will reduce the cost substantially and also save foreign exchange outflow, making India self-reliant, the AAI said.