Air India recently placed a historic order of 470 aircraft which will be delivered in the next 7-8 years. These included 400 single aisle and 70 wide body planes from Airbus and Boeing. Now, it has been learnt that the order is actually much bigger and of 840 aircraft which will “connect India nonstop to every major city in the world.”
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Nipun Aggarwal, Chief Commercial and Transformation Officer, Air India was one of the most instrumental individuals involved in this multi-billion dollar deal. He said that “the order comprises of 470 firm aircraft, 370 options and purchase rights to be procured from Airbus and Boeing over the next decade.” For the unversed, an option is provided to the airline at the time of placing firm order for aircraft which allows it to buy additional planes at an agreed price and date in near future.
These 840 aircraft will help Air India in replacing the older fleet of airplanes whose interiors are outdated and caused much embarrassment to the airline. The company couldn’t upgrade the interior in the last few years due to lack of investment and funds.
Air India in an official statement stated that the 470 aircraft will be inducted in its fleet in the next 7-8 years and the airline will gradually phase out its old fleet. Apart from the plush, modern and upmarket interiors, the new aircraft will also be more fuel efficient which will help Air India in achieving profitability.
“It is indeed a landmark moment in the history of Air India and Indian aviation. This order of 840 aircrafts has been a culmination of a fascinating journey that began almost two years ago starting with the Air India privatisation process. The order comprises of 470 firm aircraft, 370 options and purchase rights to be procured from Airbus and Boeing over the next decade. The Airbus firm order comprises 210 A-320/321 Neo / XLR and 40 A350-900/1000. The Boeing firm order comprises 190 737-Max, 20 787s and 10 777s. We have also signed up for long term maintenance of the engines with CFM International (CFM), Rolls-Royce and GE Aerospace,” Aggarwal said on social media.
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