Air India prepares one of the largest aircraft deals in aviation history

Air India is considering ordering as many as 300 narrowbody jets, according to people familiar with the matter, in what could be one of the largest orders in commercial aviation history as the formerly state-run airline looks to overhaul its fleet under new ownership. The carrier may order Airbus’ A320neo family jets or Boeing’s 737 Max models, or a mix of both, the people said, asking not to be identified because the discussions are confidential. A deal for 300 737 Max-10 jets could be worth $40.5b at sticker prices, although discounts are common in such large purchases. Winning a narrowbody order in India would be a coup for Boeing, as rival Airbus dominates the skies in the country, the world’s fastest-growing aviation market before the Covid pandemic. IndiGo, operated by InterGlobe Aviation, is the world’s largest customer for the European manufacturer’s best-selling narrowbodies, ordering more than 700, and others including Vistara, Go Airlines India and AirAsia India fly planes from the same family. Production and delivery of 300 planes would likely take years or even more than a decade. Airbus builds about 50 narrowbody jets in a month, with plans to increase that to 65 by the middle of 2023, and 75 by 2025. Representatives for Air India and Boeing declined to comment. “This order presumably involves new methods of financing to play out in the right manner, including factoring in macroeconomic trends -- notably the fluctuating rupee and rising inflation,” said Satyendra Pandey, managing partner of aviation advisory firm AT-TV. “Some airlines have placed voluminous orders only to find that they are unable to line up financing at favorable terms. While it is not an outcome that one envisions and certainly not with a group such as the Tatas, nevertheless it has to be planned for.”<br/>