India's Akasa to place large plane order in 2023, eyes international growth

India's Akasa Air will place a "substantially" large order for new narrowbody jets this year, as the start-up budget airline looks to capitalise on booming demand at home and begin international flights, its CE told Reuters. The 200-day-old airline has taken delivery of 17 Boeing (BA.N) 737 MAX planes out of a total order of 72 jets to be delivered by March 2027. "Before the end of this year we are going to place another aircraft order that is going to be substantially larger than the 72 aircraft order we have placed," Vinay Dube said during an interview without giving a specific number. The new order will be for narrowbody planes, said Akasa's founder, a former CE of now-grounded, bankrupt full-service carrier Jet Airways. Dube did not say whether the order would go to Boeing or Airbus, but budget carriers typically prefer to use a single narrowbody type to help control costs. The order plans come as travel demand in India has seen a sharp rebound post COVID-19, making it the world's fastest-growing aviation market, with capacity surpassing 2019 levels and passenger numbers inching close.<br/>