Transport Minister Suriya Jungrungreangkit has announced that Thailand and France are set to collaborate to advance the Thai aviation industry to meet future demands. The partnership stems from ongoing discussions in Paris with Damien Caze, head of France’s Directorate-General for Civil Aviation, and is guided by an existing Memorandum of Understanding on Technical Cooperation.
According to Suriya, the agreement paves the way for both countries to enhance Thailand’s aviation capabilities, focusing on areas such as new aircraft development, including Electric Vertical Take-off and Landing (eVTOL) drones and urban air mobility (UAM) vehicles for improved small-scale transport and logistics.
The discussions also touched on enhancing cybersecurity within the aviation sector to counteract the evolving risk of cyberattacks. Another critical area of cooperation is aviation ecology, particularly the adoption of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) to support the decarbonization of the industry.
Minister Suriya also engaged with representatives from private companies, including Satys and Volocopter from Germany, to explore investment opportunities in Thailand. Satys is recognized for its expertise in aircraft painting and interior manufacturing, while Volocopter specializes in eco-friendly electric multirotor helicopters for personal and taxi use. (NNT)
