Singapore Airshow: Pandemic to Affect Participation, India to Showcase Tejas Light Combat Aircraft

The slow recovery of the global aviation industry and the government travel restrictions due to the Omicron variant of COVID-19 is likely to cast a shadow over Singapore Airshow next week. The first wave of the pandemic completely disrupted the 2020 event, but this year shows a betterment. India will showcase its indigenously developed Tejas Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) at the four-day Singapore Airshow from February 15-18, 2022. The Defence Ministry’s 44-member contingent of the Indian Air Force (IAF) has already reached Singapore to take part in the event. India’s Tejas aircraft is capable of air combat and offensive air support missions, with reconnaissance and anti-ship missions as secondary duties. Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd manufactured the plane. For the IAF, the event will allow interaction with other participants from across the globe and interact with its counterparts from Royal Singapore Air Force (RSAF). It is the best platform to display the Made in India low-cost fighter jet to the world.

Key Participation at Singapore Airshow 2022

Aircraft manufacturers Airbus, Boeing, and Lockheed Martin, will send senior executives to the Singapore Airshow. There are reports that some industry executives have decided not to participate in the event, considering the restrictions including daily testing, mandatory rule of wearing masks in the tropical heat, no intermingling during mealtime, and hotel isolation if they test positive. Singapore-based aviation analyst Brendan Sobie has said Reuters expects a quiet, local gathering at the show, with many overseas executives holding meetings in the city centre. “The concern from many exhibitors is a lack of customers visiting,” Sobie told Reuters. The releases from Singapore Airshow show that the event is likely to give prominence to the benefits of new aircraft in cutting carbon emissions as the industry targets “net zero” emissions by 2050 through biofuels and engine technology. The show will also feature military hardware and aerobatics. Singapore Air Show, considered among the top amongst the ASEAN countries, provides a global platform for the aviation industry worldwide to showcase its products.