By Mohammed Shafeeq

Hyderabad, Mar 19 (IANS): Cirrus India foresees huge demand for its aircraft which they say is a certified plane with parachute and has vowed to make flying more affordable.

The five-seater multipurpose aircraft is considered useful for remote connectivity, flying training, personal and business flying, surveillance and aerial activity.

"Even a common man can afford to fly by this aircraft because its operational cost is only Rs.14,000 per hour," Cirrus India Managing Director, Captain Sanjay told IANS.

"People don't know that such an aircraft exist at the cost of a premium car," he said.

The small aircraft, manufactured by US-based Cirrus Aircraft, costs around Rs.3.5 crore.

Cirrus India, promoted by SRK Aviacom (I) Pvt. Ltd, is displaying Cirrus aircraft at India Aviation 2016, the country's largest civil aviation show currently underway at Begumpet Airport here.

The aircraft on static display flew in from Abu Dhabi, which the company officials say prove its good range and performance. This aircraft belongs to Emirates, which is using it for training of its pilots.

Sanjay said Cirrus aircraft can contribute significantly to achieve regional connectivity as envisaged in draft aviation policy as it can connect tier III cities to tier II and tier I cities.

"For us life is precious and that is why we have parachute on this aircraft, which is safe and best. In many tragic accidents, people lost their lives because there were no parachutes on aircraft," said Sanjay.

"It is creating awareness in the industry that if you love your life use parachute. We don't recommend to pull the parachute but we have provided additional safety feature," said Roohi Bali, sales manager, Cirrus India.

There are about 7,000 Cirrus aircraft in service worldwide and have crossed six million flying hours. India has four aircraft in service since 2008.

However, the company recently made drastic changes in the old models, to improve the design and performance and added more features. It has three to four more orders for the aircraft in India.

The company, which is in talks with many players in India, feels the aircraft is ideal for both civil and defence pilot training, border security, police patrolling, surveillance, aerial survey, geographical survey and the operations in Maoist affected regions.

According to company officials, defence forces of various countries including US, France and Saudi Arabia are using Cirrus aircraft.

"The government is talking a lot about connecting tier III and tier II cities with tier I cities. This aircraft can be useful as it is a small aircraft and needs small runway to land and take-off," said an official.

Cirrus plans to deliver the first regional jet with parachute by third or fourth quarter of 2016. The company has already received over 600 bookings.

The jet with cruising altitude of 28,000 feet, is expected to have good demand for medical evacuation in India.

"Its price will be less than two million dollars, which is significantly low compared to the jets of same capability in the market," added Sanjay.