Ashish Ranjan
Nipun Aggarwal, chief commercial and transformation officer Air India, stated that the airline has the option to purchase a further 370 aircraft from Boeing and Airbus, bringing its total order to 470 aircraft.
The current purchase of 470 aircraft is the largest ever placed by a single airline anywhere in the world, surpassing American Airlines’ 2011 order of 460 aircraft. The previous largest order by an Indian carrier was for 300 aircraft by IndiGo in 2019.
“The deal includes 470 firm aircraft, 370 options and buy rights to be acquired from Airbus and Boeing over the following ten years.” The solid order for Airbus includes 210 A-320/321 Neo/XLR and 40 A350-900/1000 aircraft. The Boeing order consists of 190 737-Max aircraft, 20 787s, and 10 777s. We have also contracted with CFM International (CFM), Rolls-Royce, and GE Aerospace for long-term maintenance of the engines,” Aggarwal added in a LinkedIn post.
A firm order is the quantity of aircraft that a buyer has committed to purchasing. Typically, solid orders are accompanied by options that permit the airline to purchase additional planes at an agreed-upon price and date in the future. Options, unlike solid orders, do not obligate the buyer.
Boeing said in its announcement of the twin orders on February 14 that Air India has the option to purchase an additional 70 aircraft in addition to the 220 that are part of the firm order. At the time, it was unclear whether an option existed in addition to the definitive contract for 250 Airbus aircraft.
“In addition to the 470 aircraft on firm order, Air India has obtained options and buy rights for a number of additional aircraft,” These offer us the option, but not the responsibility, to take additional aircraft at already-negotiated production slots and/or pricing so that we may quickly accommodate future growth and manage risk,” Air India CEO Campbell Wilson stated in an internal memo to employees.
The majority of Air India’s and Air India Express’ fleet of approximately 140 aircraft are narrowbody aircraft. Air India currently relies primarily on Airbus aircraft for domestic operations, while its widebody fleet is comprised of Boeing aircraft. Air India Express only utilises Boeing narrow-body aircraft.
Over 17 years ago, Erstwhile Indian Airlines and Air India’s made an order for 111 planes, which included single-aisle Airbus aircraft and twin-aisle Boeing planes. Eventually, the two government-owned airlines of the time united under the Air India brand.
Since Air India was returned to the Tata Group a little over a year ago, the new owners have been focused on improving the airline’s product offerings and preparing a significant expansion. A five-year plan, Vihaan.AI, was created with the goal of significantly expanding the airline’s network and fleet in order to put it on the “route to sustained development, profitability, and market leadership.”
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The twin orders are crucial to this technique. Air India is also renovating its existing aircraft and attempting to return a few grounded aircraft to service. It is also leasing aircraft to increase its network until the freshly ordered aircraft are integrated into the fleet.
