Aero India in its 15th edition in the year 2025 is Asia largest aerospace and defence exhibition that is taking at the Yelahanka Air Force Station in Bengaluru, Karnataka from 10-14th February, 2025. Aero India in Bengaluru is a biennial event and this year’s edition is set to be the biggest-ever in the history of Aero India.
Taking place under the broad theme of “The Runway to a Billion Opportunities”, the five-day confluence of critical and frontier Aero technologies will be showcasing India’s aerial prowess and cutting-edge innovations, parallel to the state-of-the-art products of global aerospace companies. The exhibition is in line with “Aatmanirbhar Bharat” and “Make in India, Make for the World vision”, thereby providing a platform for international engagement and collaboration on aero technology and aero defence techniques.
Highlights from Aero India 2025
The much awaited event was inaugurated by the Defence Minister of India Mr. Rajnath Singh on February 10, 2025. During his address at the event, he stated that “Aero India 2025, a confluence of critical & frontier technologies, will provide a platform to further strengthen relations among like-minded countries based on mutual respect, mutual interest and mutual benefit to deal with today’s uncertainties. Aero India 2025 will showcase the country’s industrial capability and technological advancements to the world, while further strengthening symbiotic relations with friendly countries. Lasting peace can only be achieved if nations become stronger together and work for a Better World Order”.
Organised on a massive scale, the 15th edition of the Aero India airshow, is witnessing the participation of over 900 exhibitors, including 150 foreign companies, with Defence Ministers and representatives from over 30 countries and Air Chiefs and Secretaries from 43 countries marking their presence at the prestigious event.
Furthermore, the Defence Minister also inaugurated the India Pavilion that showcased the country’s cutting-edge aero defence technologies, aerospace developments, and commitment to self-reliance. The Pavilion highlights India’s growing capabilities in indigenous innovation and strategic defence initiatives. Thereafter, the iDEX Pavilion at Aero India 2025 was also inaugurated by him, which showcased India’s thriving aero defence innovation ecosystem and highlighted ground breaking technologies developed by startups, MSMEs, and innovators under the Innovation for Defence Excellence initiative.
The Defence Minister also chaired the CEOs Roundtable on the theme “Enabling Defence Cooperation through Global Engagement (EDGE)”, which saw OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) from 19 countries (USA, France, Russia, South Korea, UK, Japan, Israel & Brazil etc.) and 35 Indian and 16 Defence DPSUs (Defence Public Sector Undertaking) who marked their presence at the Aero India airshow. During the conference he stated that “amidst the fragile global security situation, where rules-based order is being challenged and technologies are creating new opportunities and vulnerabilities, there is a need to adopt and improve solutions constantly”.
Moreover, in a historic first, Aero India 2025 will also witness the participation of two of the world’s most advanced fifth-generation fighter aircrafts- the Russian Su-57 and the American F-35 Lightning, which marks a milestone in global defence collaboration and advancement in aero technology, offering aviation enthusiasts and defence experts an unparalleled prospect to witness these state-of-the-art war planes.
On the sidelines
In a continuous engagement, the Defence minister also held bilateral meetings with the Minister for Defence and Veteran affairs, Republic of Fiji; Mr. Pio Tikoduadua, who is on his maiden visit to India, with both the sides agreeing to institutionalise India-Fiji Working group on Defence Cooperation. The Defence Minister also held bilateral meeting with Minister of Defence and Veteran Affairs of South Sudan; Lt. Gen. Chol Thon J Balok, wherein the leaders agreed to initiate and expedite efforts navigating bilateral cooperation.
The Defence Minister also held bilateral meetings with Defence Minister of Tanzania, wherein the discussions focused on cross-border terrorism, dockyard development, & co-hosting the maiden Africa-India Maritime exercise in April 2025. In a bilateral interaction with the Defence Minister of Zambia, both the sides agreed to boost capacity building, with India continuing to expand defence partnership in Africa.
