Air India on Monday said it will progressively induct 30 new aircraft, including 5 wide-body Boeing planes, from December this year, as the Tatas-owned airline looks to boost its domestic and international services. The airline has signed leases and letters of intent for inducting 5 wide-body Boeing and 25 Airbus narrow-body planes over the next 15 months. "These new aircraft, which will enter service from late 2022, will increase the airline's fleet by over 25 per cent.
While the government is working on final contours for a strategic divestment of its stake in loss-making Air India, the airline is ready with plans to fly to more overseas destinations.
Full service carrier Air India on Thursday announced a new multi-year global distribution services partnership with US-based Sabre Corporation. The collaboration enables travel agents and corporations around the world to access Air India fares and seats through Sabre's extensive global travel marketplace, Air India said in a statement. In addition to the distribution services, Air India said it is utilising Sabre's consultancy expertise to help determine optimal routes for its existing and new fleet.
All the 50 Dreamliners delivered by Boeing to airlines across the world, including six of Air India, have been grounded following two incidents of fire and smoke in the lithium ion batteries.
It offers a real opportunity for the flag carrier to compete on the world stage, backed by a leading conglomerate with deep pockets like the Tatas, observes Indrajit Gupta.
The number of Indian passengers has jumped more than 20 per cent in the past year
The facility is a joint venture between the aerospace major and national carrier Air India, while MADC, a government agency, has provided the land. The 99-year lease agreement is for 50 acres of land located adjacent to the Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport under the prestigious Multi-modal International Passenger and Cargo Hub, Nagpur project.
Indian budget airline SpiceJet has agreed to buy around 40 Boeing 737 passenger jets worth over $4 billion at list prices as it seeks to modernize its fleet and climb out of the red, industry sources said on Tuesday.
Air India used to fly its 787s on three domestic and three international routes.
Air-India's decision to purchase Boeing's 787 Dreamliners has re-ignited the fight for supremacy between Boeing and Europe's Airbus in the civil aviation market, media reports said in Washington.
Air India's decision to buy five Boeing 787-9 is illogical.
Boeing on Tuesday said it would finalise by June the location for its $100 million maintenance, repair and overhaul facility in India.
The passengers were transferred to another Boeing 747 in Mumbai for their onward journey
Air India Express along with SpiceJet and Jet Airways is one of the three main targets for Boeing in the country as it promotes its new 737 MAX aircraft, which is scheduled to enter commercial operations in 2017.
This keeps the American aircraft giant on track to deliver five of the large, versatile military transport aircraft to the IAF this year, and five more in 2014.
The United States government has approved a licence authorising Boeing Co. to enter into talks with India's premier space agency for jointly developing and marketing communication satellites, an official said Tuesday.
Boeing's 50 Dreamliners in service have been grounded since mid-January following two incidents involving battery problems.
"The deliveries of all 787 dreamliners will start from the second quarter of the next financial year and will complete by 2014. These fuel-efficient aircraft will help us reduce costs of our long-haul operations," said an Air India official.
Crew shortage is impacting the operations of Air India, with some flights to the US and Canada either getting cancelled or facing inordinate delays, according to a source. Tata group-owned Air India, which is the only air operator flying on ultra-long haul routes, had faced problems last year also due to the shortage of crew members. An ultra-long haul flight's duration is more than 16 hours.
International aircraft major Boeing on Tuesday welcomed the Congress-led government's move to have a relook at the Indian Airlines' plans to order 43 aircraft from the European consortium Airbus Industries.
The embassy observations are part of a confidential official cable released by whistleblower website WikiLeaks on August 30.
Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh inaugurated the 5-day long event.
... changing seats and in-flight entertainment on its older aircraft.
A Cabinet decision is still awaited on the induction of Dreamliner into the cash-strapped AI fleet.
Recently, there have been technical mishaps, including an electrical fire and a brake problem, involving the aircraft.
Planemakers have started pitching their latest aircraft to a privatised Air India which has been acquired by salt-to-steel conglomerate Tata Sons. European aerospace major Airbus on Monday said that it is in talks with the airline to sell its long haul aircraft Airbus A350-900. The wide-body aircraft is capable of flying non-stop between India and United States- one of the most popular and revenue generating routes.
In its bid to grab Air India orders, US aircraft manufacturer Boeing on Tuesday said it had offered a "comprehensive competitive pricing" to the public sector carrier, whose decision to purchase 50 aircraft of different makes was yet to get governmen
The safety and security of citizens is primary for the government, he said.
'This may open up doors for private players in India to collaborate with global players in commercial missions.'
The national carrier, which had placed orders for 27 Dreamliners in 2006, has so far taken the delivery of 13 aircraft.
India has told the US government that due consideration would be given to the offer of American aircraft major, Boeing for the fleet acquisition plans of Air India and Indian Airlines, US Transportation Secretary Norman Y Mineta said on Thursday.
The court order could put SpiceJet's revival plan under stress.
Kohler made the comments on aviation industry-wide speculation about New Delhi increasing FDI in defence sector to 49 per cent from the current 26 per cent, with some expecting an announcement in the near future.
The Boeing Company's proposed MRO base in Nagpur for maintenance and repair of aircraft may have another partner in addition to state-owned carrier Air India.
Its association with India is over 70 years old and spans both civil and military aviation. The Douglas DC-3 transport aircraft used by the air force beginning the 1940s and the iconic Boeing 747 aircraft flown by Air India, both had Pratt & Whitney (P&W) engines. The Indian Air Force's present-day, heavy-lift C-17 Globemaster III and the yet-to-be-inducted C-295 planes, too, have P&W power plants.
It is a similar story several thousand miles away, outside the company's North Charleston, South Carolina final assembly building, where space is taken up by four 787s destined for Air India.
An investigation into the battery of Boeing 787 Dreamliner that caused a fire in Boston early this month, showed signs of thermal runway and short-circuiting, US government investigators said.
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