Airbus Helicopters and Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for financing the purchase of Airbus’ helicopters in India. The move is expected to boost the helicopter market especially in verticals of health and tourism as Airbus sources stated that though there is a potential in India it’s facing resource crunch.
The MoU will allow both Airbus Helicopters and SIDBI, the government’s principal financial institution for promoting, financing and developing the MSME sector, to identify potential civil helicopter operators in India interested in financing solutions for purchasing helicopters, the SIDBI said in an official statement on Monday.
“Airbus will provide the technical and helicopter industry knowledge to the SIDBI which will evaluate these prospects and finance them exclusively for the Airbus,” it added. Contrary to fixed wing aircrafts, helicopters don’t need much cash and the drone innovations is expected to increase the platforms’ availability in the market.
The MoU was signed by Rahul Priyadarshi, Chief General Manager of the SIDBI, and Sunny Guglani, Head of Airbus Helicopters, India and South Asia. Speaking on the occasion, Rahul Priyadarshi said, “This a new area for financing to helicopter operators by SIDBI and is expected to open new avenues for financing MSMEs related to this segment.”
“The MoU with SIDBI opens a new chapter in making civil helicopters more accessible to operators in India, which will further position these rotary wing aircraft as a critical tool for nation building. Combining our unmatched product portfolio and industry expertise with SIDBI’s attractive financing solutions will play a pivotal role in the expansion of the civil helicopter market in India,” said Sunny Guglani.
The SIDBI stated that this collaboration marks its significant foray into helicopter financing and meeting the financial and development needs of India’s fast-growing rotary wing sector.