Air India buys 540 aircraft in biggest ever aviation deal

Tata-owned Air India Ltd has agreed to purchase a total of 540 aircraft from Boeing and Airbus, marking the biggest ever aviation deal in history.

Of the total order, about 450 aircraft are single-aisle aircraft from the Airbus 320 family and Boeing 737 MAX, which will fly domestic and short-haul international flights. Photo courtesy: Wikimedia

In a LinkedIn post, Air India's Chief Commercial and Transformation Officer Nipun Aggarwal said the airline is humbled by the excitement generated across the world by the airline's aircraft order.

Of the total 540 aircraft, 470 are firm orders, and the rest 70 are options with Boeing that Air India can exercise in the future. The 470 aircraft include 250 Airbus and 220 Boeing planes, with the first of them landing later this year. According to Bloomberg, the previous single largest jet order was a 460-plane deal by American Airlines in 2011.

“The first aircraft to arrive will be 25 brand-new Boeing B737-800s and six Airbus A350-900s in the second half of 2023, with deliveries really ramping up in 2025 and beyond. In the meantime, our capacity growth will continue to be supported by the previously announced lease-in of additional narrow-body and wide-body aircraft and the restoration-to-service of the remainder of our grounded fleet," Air India CEO Campbell Wilson said in an email to employees.

Of the total order, about 450 aircraft are single-aisle aircraft from the Airbus 320 family and Boeing 737 MAX, which will fly domestic and short-haul international flights. The rest 90 planes are dual-aisle planes which will fly to Europe and the Americas.