News Synopsis
In what would be its first major expansion since being acquired by Tata Group less than eight months ago, Air India announced on Monday that it will add 30 new aircraft in the coming months, increasing its fleet by more than 25%. The airline has agreed to lease or sign letters of intent for 25 Airbus narrow-body planes and five Boeing wide-body planes. These will go into service in late 2022. Its current fleet consists of 113 planes, 87 of which are operational (77%).
There are 21 Airbus A320neos, four Airbus A321neos, and five Boeing B777-200LRs being leased. This fleet addition will assist Air India in meeting its capacity needs in the short term, as its plans to purchase 200 new planes will take time because both Boeing and Airbus have full order books.
Air India has not purchased a single aircraft since 2006, when it placed orders for 68 Boeing and 43 Airbus planes. According to the company, ten long-grounded narrow-body and six wide-body aircraft have been returned to service and will join the operational fleet in early 2023.
