Who doesn't love clicking a selfie in a hot air balloon or enjoying popcorn while watching the Jets perform stunning adventures in the sky? Though these sound cinematic, Air Sports needs no introduction.
Air Sports need an adventure and thrill mindset, passion, technical expertise, infrastructure, and guidelines, resulting in increased tourism, employment and revenue generation opportunities. You may experience the thrill in India with Air Sports, now backed by the NASP 2022.
National Air Sports Policy (NASP) 2022:
On 7th June 2022, the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) launched the National Air Sports Policy (NASP) 2022, with a vision to make India one of the top air sports nations by 2030 by providing a safe, affordable, accessible, enjoyable and sustainable air sports ecosystem in India.
Air Sports covered under NASP 2022:
| Sl.No | Air Sport |
| 1 | Aerobatics |
| 2 | Aero modeling and model rocketry |
| 3 | Amateur-built and experimental aircraft |
| 4 | Ballooning |
| 5 | Drones |
| 6 | Gliding and powered gliding |
| 7 | Hang gliding and powered hang gliding |
| 8 | Parachuting (including skydiving, BASE jumping and wing suits etc.) |
| 9 | Paragliding and para motoring (including powered parachute trikes etc.) |
| 10 | Powered aircraft (including ultra light, micro light and light sports aircraft etc.) |
| 11 | Rotorcraft (including autogyro) |
For now, the list consists of 11 air sports and may be revised from time to time.
As per NASP 2022, it is proposed to set up an Air Sports Federation of India (ASFI) as the apex governing body. The objectives of ASFI include - promoting an air sports culture in the country, enabling the adoption of international good practices in safety, developing an effective governance structure, enhancing participation in global air sports events and promoting local manufacturing of air sports equipment.
Places in India for Air Sports:
Considering the geographic stretch, topography, and climatic zones, India has a high potential for Air Sports. While no specific location is marked for Air Sports so far, here's a list of a few Air Sports Hubs in the country:
| Sl.No | State | Place | Air Sport |
| 1 | Himachal Pradesh | Bir Billing | Paragliding |
| 2 | Rajasthan | Pushkar | Hot air ballooning |
| 3 | Himachal Pradesh | Kangra valley | Hang gliding |
| 4 | Maharashtra | Pune/Mumbai | Paramotoring |
| 5 | Karnataka | Mysore | Skydiving |
| 6 | Haryana | Narnaul | |
| 7 | Pondicherry | ||
| 8 | Gujarat | Dessa | |
| 9 | Madhya Pradesh | Dhana |
For Travel Freaks: Remember the list; the next time you travel to any of the above places, the names may come in handy.
As India targets over Rs 8,000 – 10,000 crore annual revenue and generates over 1,00,000 direct jobs with NASP 2022, you may see India as the next destination for Air Sports in the coming years.
