Tata Group's Air India to buy 250 planes from Airbus

Air India has agreed to buy 250 jets from Airbus, N Chandrasekaran, chairman of Tata Group said on Tuesday. Tata Group is the new owner of the airline. Out of 250 jets, 210 will be narrowbody planes and 40 others will be widebody aircraft.

The deal is part of a huge order by Air India for 470 planes which is expected to also include an order for 220 planes from Airbus rival Boeing as it heralds a decade-long expansion and reinvents itself under Tata.

Earlier, there were reports that Air India has agreed to purchase 250 Airbus planes and 220 Boeing aircraft including 190 of its 737 MAX narrowbody jets, 20 787 widebodies and 10 777Xs.

While Airbus and Air India signed the agreement on Friday, Boeing agreed its deal with the airline on January 27, a date that marks a year since Tata regained ownership of the former state-run carrier, sources told Reuters.

In a note to employees on January 27, the airline said it was "finalising a historic order for new aircraft".

The order reflects Air India's strategy to modernise its ageing fleet and re-capture a solid share of trips between India's large overseas diaspora and cities such as Delhi and Mumbai, dominated mainly by Gulf rivals such as Emirates with its young planes.

The record order aims to put Air India in the league of large global airlines and make it an influential customer for planemakers and suppliers at a time when its home market is seeing a strong post-COVID-19 travel surge.

Air India, with its maharajah mascot, was once known for its lavishly decorated planes and stellar service but its reputation declined in the mid-2000s as financial troubles mounted.

Under its new owners, the airline is looking to restore its reputation at home and abroad as a storied carrier with impeccable service and world-class planes.

With Reuters inputs