'Think buses in the sky'...Deepinder Goyal eyes aviation venture with LAT Aerospace; here is what is known

Goyal's bet on the aviation venture could redefine regional air travel in India, which is at a nascent stage, as uncertainty remains over regulatory clearance, technological capability and public adoption.

"While building Zomato and flying across India, Deepinder and I kept circling back to the same question: Why is regional air travel still so broken – expensive, infrequent and mostly out of reach unless you live in a metro? India has 450+ airstrips – but only 150 see commercial flights. That means nearly two-thirds of our aviation potential is being wasted. Meanwhile, millions in Tier 2 and 3 cities spend hours – sometimes days – travelling by road or rail," Das said in the post.

Outlining the vision behind building LAT Aerospace, Surobhi further stated, "Think buses in the sky – affordable, high-frequency, and designed to connect the places the airline industry overlooked. Our aircraft will take off and land in compact "air-stops" – no bigger than a parking lot – built closer to where people live." No chaos. No security lines. Just walk in and fly."

Earlier in March 2025, it was reported that Deepinder Goyal invested $20 million in LAT Aerospace, founded by Zomato’s former chief operating officer Surobhi Das.

“Both Das and Goyal are founders of the startup, but Goyal’s involvement will focus on investment and mentoring the startup in a non-executive role,” ET quoted a person aware of the matter as saying.

LAT Aerospace, currently operating in stealth mode, plans to develop low-cost short takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft with a capacity of up to 24 passengers.

STOL aircraft, which require shorter runways than conventional planes, will operate from compact “air-stops” comparable in size to a parking lot.

The report suggests that LAT Aerospace is designing aircraft with a range of up to 1,500 kilometres and aims to compete with established manufacturers like France and Italy’s ATR and Canada’s Bombardier, whose planes are used by Indian carriers such as IndiGo and SpiceJet.