Air India to buy 470 planes from Airbus, Boeing in a landmark aviation deal

Tata Group-owned Air India on Tuesday said it will buy a total of 470 wide-body and narrow-body planes from Airbus and Boeing as the airline expands its operations.

"The order comprises 40 Airbus A350s, 20 Boeing 787s and 10 Boeing 777-9s wide-body aircraft, as well as 210 Airbus A320/321 Neos and 190 Boeing 737 MAX single-aisle aircraft.

“The A350 aircraft will be powered by Rolls-Royce engines, and the B777/787s by engines from GE Aerospace.

“All single-aisle aircraft will be powered by engines from CFM International," the airline said in a statement.

According to Air India, the first of the new aircraft will enter service in late 2023 and the bulk of the planes are to arrive from mid-2025 onwards.

"In the interim, Air India has already started taking delivery of 11 leased B777 and 25 A320 aircraft to accelerate its fleet and network expansion," it said.

Tata Sons and Air India chairman N Chandrasekaran said the airline is on a large transformation journey across safety, customer service, technology, engineering, network and human resources.

"This order is an important step in realising Air India's ambition, articulated in its Vihaan.AI transformation programme, to offer a world-class proposition serving global travellers with an Indian heart.

“These new aircraft will modernise the airline's fleet and onboard product, and dramatically expand its global network," he said.

In another development, GE Aerospace said it has signed a deal with Air India for the largest LEAP engine order of more than 800 LEAP engines for the airline's orders of 400 Airbus and Boeing single-aisle aircraft.

Besides, GE Aerospace has an order for 40 GEnx-1B and 20 GE9X engines as well as multi-year engine services agreement with respect to 20 Boeing 787 and 10 Boeing 777X aircraft.

"Air India also announced a CFM order for more than 800 LEAP engines, the largest LEAP order ever, to power its entire narrow-body purchase of 210 Airbus A320/A321neo aircraft and 190 Boeing 737 MAX-family aircraft.

“The announcement includes a multi-year CFM services agreement," it said in a release.

CFM is an equal joint venture between GE and Safran Aircraft Engines.

CFM manufactures LEAP engines.

"Over the last decade, we have introduced a new portfolio of commercial engines that are significantly more fuel efficient, quieter, and emit less CO2... This record order reflects our strong product renewal and our customer's continued confidence in our engines," Russell Stokes, president and CEO Commercial Engines and Services for GE Aerospace, said.

Air India on Tuesday announced that it will acquire a total 470 planes from Airbus and Boeing.