GIFAS, the French Aerospace Industries Association, a driving force behind French-Indian cooperation, has head a major industrial mission to India from April 16 to 19.
This mission has been an exceptional opportunity for the Indian and French aerospace industries to meet and explore common fields of win-win cooperation, and all its objectives have been achieved.
Drawing on the very constructive State visit to India of French President Emmanuel Macron in March 2018, this mission hence has supported the commitment of French industries to the "Make in India" policy, in the fields of aerospace, defence and space.
Eric Trappier, the Chairman of GIFAS and Chairman of CIDEF (Council of French Defence Industries), has led this mission. In New Delhi and Bangalore, he met with several ministers and officials such as Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of Defence, Suresh Prabhu, Minister of Commerce, Industry and Civil Aviation, Dr. Bhamre, Minister of State for Defence, Jayant Sinha, Minister of State for Civil Aviation, RV. Deshpande, Minister of Industry and Commerce of the State of Karnataka.
The delegation has made stops in New Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai and Hyderabad, where more than 390 business-to-business meetings have been co-organised with SIDM (Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers) and CII (Confederation of Indian Industry). They have brought together the sectors' companies from both countries. This took place on the occasion of two seminar dedicated to the "Indo-French Defence and Aerospace Cooperation".
An MoU between GIFAS and SIDM (Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers) has been signed to promote partnerships and cooperation.
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60 French aerospace industrial companies participated. The major aviation and space players representing both civilian and defence business interests were present - Airbus, Ariane Group, Dassault Aviation, MBDA, Safran and Thales - not to mention 54 subcontractors, suppliers, SMEs and equipment manufacturers.
The Chairman of GIFAS, Eric Trappier, Chairman and CEO of Dassault Aviation, stated: "This GIFAS visit is a real success. Cooperation in the areas of aeronautics and space will be strengthened by all the meetings and interactions we got this week and the measures now to implement.We are glad to contribute to the "Make in India" policy and strengthen the strategic partnership between India and France".