India centre stage at Paris air show, as AI set to order 470 aircrafts

That deal, sketched in February, was at the time the largest ever announced by number of planes. But it was surpassed on day one of Paris show by rival IndiGo's order for 500 Airbus narrowbody jets

By Joanna Plucinska and Valerie Insinna

PARIS (Reuters) - India was set to dominate the Paris Airshow for a second day on Tuesday, with Air India expected to finalise a whopping order for 470 planes from Airbus and Boeing, sources familiar with the matter said.

That deal, sketched out in February, was at the time the largest ever announced by number of planes. But it was surpassed on day one of the Paris show by Indian rival IndiGo's order for 500 Airbus narrowbody jets.

Efforts by Indian airlines to keep pace with the world's fastest-growing aviation market, serving the largest population, have sent industry records tumbling even though manufacturers are struggling to meet output goals due to supple chain snags.

Indian carriers now have the second-largest order book, with an over 6% share of the industry backlog, behind only the United States, according to a June 1 report by Barclays.

But some analysts have expressed concern that airlines could be over-ordering jets in pursuit of the same passengers.

Air India's provisional deal included 250 planes from Airbus and 220 from Boeing. The Airbus part comprised 210 A320neo narrowbodies and 40 A350 widebodies, while the Boeing deal was for 190 737 MAX, 20 787 Dreamliners and 10 mini-jumbo 777X.

Together with another 25 Airbus jets to be leased, the overall acquisition reaches 495 jets, an Airbus executive said at the time.

The companies declined to comment on Tuesday.

Air India, with its maharajah mascot, was once known for its lavishly decorated planes and stellar service, but its reputation declined in the mid-2000s as financial troubles mounted.

Its renaissance under the Tata conglomerate aims to capitalise on India's growing base of fliers and large diaspora across the world, which is currently mostly served by foreign rivals such as Emirates.

The mega-order will also put Air India on a stronger footing to compete with budget rival IndiGo, which has a majority share of the Indian market and a strong position in regional flights.

Elsewhere at the show on Tuesday, Ethiopian Airlines said it expected to announce an order for about 130 Airbus and Boeing planes shortly after the event.

Philippine Airlines finalised an order for nine Airbus A350-1000 widebody jets, while Qantas firmed up a deal for nine Airbus A220-300s, confirming a Reuters report.

 

(Reporting by Tim Hepher, Joanna Plucinska, Allison Lampert, Valerie Insinna and Aditi Shah; Editing by Mark Potter)