Air India is close to placing landmark contracts for up to 500 jetliners worth tens of billions of dollars from both Airbus and Boeing as it carves out an ambitious revival under the Tata Group conglomerate, as per industry sources, news agency Reuters reported on Sunday.
The orders include up to 400 narrow-body planes and 100 or more wide-body planes, including dozens of Airbus A350s and Boeing 787s and 777s, they added, speaking on condition of anonymity.
According to the report, such a contract might reach USD 100 billion at list prices, including any options, and rank among the largest by a single airline in terms of volume, dwarfing American Airlines’ combined order for 460 Airbus and Boeing planes over a decade ago.
Even with considerable projected discounts, the transaction would be worth tens of billions of dollars and would cap a turbulent year for a sector whose planes are back in demand following the epidemic but is facing rising industrial and environmental challenges.
Airbus and Boeing both declined to comment. Air India, which is owned by the Tata Group, did not immediately reply to a request for comment, the report added.
The possible order comes just days after Tata announced the merger of Air India and Vistara, a joint venture with Singapore Airlines, in order to establish a larger full-service carrier with a stronger footprint in both local and international skies.
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