A trusted source of Asia-Pacific commercial aviation news and analysis
Addendum
Mammoth Air India fleet renewal not done yet?
Air India’s massive order for 470 aircraft – 250 from Airbus and 220 from Boeing – may be just the beginning of the carrier’s buying spree with reports it has many more new jets under option, particularly with Airbus. Read More » Boeing’s order, announced by U.S. President Joe Biden at press time, was a commitment for 220 aircraft and 70 options. Airbus has remained silent when asked if it had options for aircraft beyond the firm 250 order.
At the European plane maker’s annual press conference, CEO Guillaume Faury was asked if Air India and Airbus had agreed to options of as many as 300 aircraft. Faury said he would not comment on options, and said only Air India had made “a sizeable order already”.
![]() |
![]() |
The resurgent airline group’s huge commitment for new jets did not surprise the market or industry media. It had been rumoured for weeks. At list prices, the orders have a staggering value of US$68 billion, aviation consultancy, IBA, has calculated. However, the Tata Group airline company will not be paying anything like that amount. Given the size of the Airbus and Boeing orders, the now privatized carrier will have negotiated deals at a significant discount.
From Airbus, the India flag carrier has ordered 140 A320neo, 70 A321neo, 34 A350-1000 and 6 A350-900 aircraft, with the first delivery of the A350-900 anticipated late this year.
Boeing’s order is 190 B737 MAX 8, 20 B787-9 and 10 B777X, making Air India the 11th customer for the B777X. The 70 options are 50 MAXs and 20 B787-9s.
IBA airline analyst, Neil Fraser, said “there had been rumours of a major order for some time. Its confirmation affirms Air India’s growth focus as it completes its merger with Vistara”.
“Air India dominates India’s international operations, with capacity twice that of its largest competitor, LCC IndiGo, in 2022,” Fraser said.
With this order containing such a significant number of narrow-bodies, IBA is speculating the new Air India may be going after IndiGo’s domestic market share.
“The domestic market has not been a major focus for Air India, whose flights have been a fifth of those operated by IndiGo,” Fraser said.
Two days after the huge orders were announced, Airbus reported its results for fiscal year 2022 of pre-tax profits of $5.7 billion on revenue of $62.9 billion. It delivered 661 commercial aircraft in the 12 months, short of its goal of 700 deliveries.
Gross annual commercial aircraft orders were 1,078, but this figure was reduced to 820 planes after cancellations. The order backlog was 7,239 commercial aircraft at the end of 2022, Airbus said.
At the results conference, Faury said assuming there are no additional disruptions to the world economy, air traffic, the supply chain, the company’s internal operations and its ability to provide products and services, Airbus aims to deliver 720 aircraft in 2023 and achieve a pre-tax profit of $6.4 billion for the year.
Response(s). Share your ideas.
Cynthia Mathews says:
January 29th 2026 01:24am
Cynthia Mathews says:
January 29th 2026 01:24am
ETHAN KOPAK says:
January 15th 2025 07:43pm
Wayne LeCoy says:
October 31st 2024 05:28pm
Jassi Gill says:
May 28th 2024 12:36am
Ginez Laredo says:
March 2nd 2024 10:18am
megan moroney says:
January 27th 2024 01:14pm
Grace Peterson says:
December 2nd 2023 12:49pm
Joffrey Martinez says:
November 27th 2023 09:34am
Bills Sarah says:
November 21st 2023 09:57am
Shovel says:
November 20th 2023 06:05pm
Bobs Ernest says:
November 18th 2023 05:05pm
Leo Antonio says:
October 7th 2023 04:09am
Lattimore says:
September 29th 2023 09:33am
Maria Clarks says:
September 22nd 2023 11:33pm
Mateo Diego says:
August 30th 2023 05:18pm
Alessandra Watson says:
August 22nd 2023 05:29pm
Diana McGregor says:
April 17th 2023 11:12am
Leonard Gilbert says:
March 19th 2023 01:37am
Jonathan Harold says:
March 16th 2023 12:57am
SPEAK YOUR MIND
Your email address will not be published. All fields are required.
© Orient Aviation Media Group. All Rights Reserved.


Brandon Bullard says:
October 18th 2026 09:44am