Aero India-2027, Asia’s largest air show, will return to Yelahanka Air Force Base in Bengaluru from February 8-12, as the country seeks to consolidate its position as a global defense manufacturing hub and expand defense exports, officials familiar with the development said on Friday.
The 16th edition of the biennial event is expected to be the largest yet, reflecting its growing scale and global appeal, officials said. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) will serve as the nodal agency for the event on behalf of the Defense Production Division of the Ministry of Defence, with support from Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), HT has learnt.
Both HAL and BEL have already been entrusted with responsibilities to ensure smooth conduct of the five-day air show, which will also serve as a platform for Indian and foreign companies to forge new partnerships and help promote localization in the aviation sector.
The air show comes as the government intensifies its efforts to boost defense production and exports. India’s annual defense production has hit a record high $1.78 lakh crore in FY 2025-26, an increase of 15.6% over $1.54 lakh crore in the previous financial year. This represents a 110% increase over the 2020-2021 fiscal year, when defense production reached… $84,643 crore, according to Ministry of Defense data.
The government aims to realize the value of defense manufacturing $3 lakh crore by 2029-30. I also set a goal to achieve $50,000 crore in defense exports during the same period.
The recent agreements to supply BrahMos and Astra cruise missiles and beyond visual range air-to-air missiles to the Indonesian Armed Forces are expected to provide new impetus to India’s defense export push. India’s defense exports have reached a record high $38,424 crore in FY 2025-26, an increase of 63% over $23,622 crore in the previous financial year.
The hardware exported by India includes missiles, guns, rockets, armored vehicles, offshore patrol vessels, personal protective equipment, radars, surveillance systems, ammunition, components and systems/subsystems. The number of exporters increased from 128 to 145 in the fiscal year 2025-2026.
Policy reforms implemented by the government have strengthened the Indian defense industry in the past few years, including simplifying industrial licensing procedures, removing parts and components from the licensing system, and simplifying export licenses.
India’s arms imports fell by 4% between 2016-2020 and 2021-2025, but the country remains the world’s second-largest importer of military equipment, accounting for 8.2% of global arms imports, according to a Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) report published in March.
