Air India is close to placing landmark orders for as many as 500 jetliners worth tens of billions of dollars from both Airbus and Boeing as it carves out an ambitious renaissance under the Tata Group conglomerate, industry sources said on Sunday. The orders include as many as 400 narrow-body jets and 100 or more wide-bodies, including dozens of Airbus A350s and Boeing 787s and 777s, they said, speaking on condition of anonymity as finishing touches are placed on the mammoth deal in coming days. Such a deal could top $100 billion dollars at list prices, including any options, and rank among the biggest by a single airline in volume terms, overshadowing a combined order for 460 Airbus and Boeing jets from American Airlines over a decade ago. Even after significant expected discounts, the deal would be worth tens of billions of dollars and cap a volatile year for plane giants whose jets are again in demand after the pandemic, but who face mounting industrial and environmental pressures. It would also allow Airbus to secure a home for some A350 production slots initially earmarked for Russia's Aeroflot and now left open because of war-related sanctions against Moscow.<br/>
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Air New Zealand has won Design Airline of the Year Oceania for 2022 in the Design Airline Awards by TheDesignAir. Starlux Airlines of Taiwan was awarded the overall Design Airline of the Year while other winners included JetBlue, Condor, Finnair and Etihad. TheDesignAir has been running since 2012 and its awards aim to recognise airlines that invest in design, product and brand, with winners decided by "a panel of industry experts, frequent fliers and team members". Air NZ's Design Airline Awards win comes after it was named 2022's second best airline in the world by AirlineRatings.com, but slumped to 30th place in the Skytrax World Airline Awards 2022. "Air NZ has earned a well-deserved award this year as Design Airline of the Year, Oceania 2022," said TheDesignAir on its website. "With the announcement of a new cabin product in the coming years, a strong bold brand, its clever use of safety videos as a marketing device and brand partnerships with excellent design leaders, the carrier oozes design details across the passenger experience. We're thrilled to see the carrier continue to evolve its passenger experience, invest in new products, and continue to be the brand platform for Aotearoan design on the international stage."<br/>