Air India to Lease 19 Airbus 320 Jets: Air India plans to lease 19 Airbus A320 jetliners as the national carrier seeks to add capacity to expand its services and compete with other local airlines. Air India would take the planes on dry lease, or without crew, for six years. The jets would have 180 economy-class seats and would have to come fitted with fuel-saving Sharklets on their wing tips, it said. Bidders have to submit their offers by Sept. 3 and the first seven aircraft would have to be delivered in the fourth quarter of 2013, according to the documents. The remaining 12 planes would have to be delivered through the financial year that ends March 31, 2016. A spokesman for Air India said the 19 planes would be used to replace aging A320 planes in its fleet and to also expand capacity. Air India—one of the launch customers for the A320—had purchased 31 jets from Airbus during 1989 to 1993. It bought an additional 43 A320 jets during 2006 to 2010. Air India is separately taking delivery of a total of 27 fuel-efficient Dreamliner jets from Boeing Co. that will be deployed on its overseas routes. The addition of fuel-efficient aircraft would allow loss-making Air India to cut its expenses toward jet fuel. Fuel accounts for up to 40% of the operating cost of an airline in India, mainly due to a range of taxes imposed by federal and provincial governments. The national carrier has recorded losses for five years because of high fuel and interest costs as well as competition from budget airlines. Air India currently has a fleet of 106 planes comprising a mix of Boeing, Airbus, ATR and Bombardier aircraft. It owns 80 of those planes.
Posted on: Tue, 13 Aug 2013 15:06:10 +0000