Airbus Gets Order for 100 Aircraft From Air India

An Air India craft sits on the tarmac at Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi, in a file photo. Raveendran/AFP/Getty Images

European aircraft manufacturer Airbus secured a large order from Air India for its A350 and A320 model planes amid an airline sector boom in the country.

Airbus said in a Dec. 9 statement that Air India has officially disclosed the order it had placed for 10 A350 widebody and 90 single-aisle A320 Family aircraft. The latest order is in addition to the 250 planes the company ordered from Airbus in 2023.

“Air India’s total orderbook for Airbus aircraft now stands at 344 with six A350-900s having already been delivered,” the company said.

The France-based aviation company’s shares rose slightly on Dec. 9, opening at 156.22 euros ($164.23) and closing at 156.96 euros ($165.01). The stock was trading at 156.28 euros ($164.29) as of 10:30 a.m. EST on Dec. 10.

Air India’s orders are part of the airline’s efforts to modernize its fleet. The A350 is a 300–410-seat aircraft. Airbus says the plane’s engine delivers a “25 percent advantage in fuel burn, operating costs and CO₂ emissions, as well as 50 percent noise reduction” compared with planes of previous generations. Air India’s A320 order includes the A321neo model, which, according to Airbus, uses 20 percent less fuel.

Air India Chairman Natarajan Chandrasekaran said the new orders position the company “on the path to greater growth,” while Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury said he was “glad to see Air India renew its trust in Airbus with this additional order.”

In addition to the aircraft, Air India ordered Airbus’s Flight Hour Services-Component to maintain its fleet of A350s.

Air India’s order for 250 Airbus planes in 2023 was unveiled together with orders for 220 Boeing aircraft. The deal was the second-largest order ever for Boeing in terms of flight numbers. At the time, President Joe Biden said the transaction would support more than a million American jobs in 44 states.

Last year, Airbus also secured an order for 500 A320 commercial jets from Indian airline IndiGo that are set to be delivered between 2030 and 2035. The deal was the “biggest single purchase agreement in the history of commercial aviation,” Airbus said.

US–India Aviation Opportunities

Indian airline companies have been placing aircraft orders in recent years as the country’s airline sector is seeing exponential growth, presenting business opportunities for American and European aircraft manufacturers.

According to a May market analysis report from aviation data platform OAG, India’s airline capacity is expected to hit 230 million departing passengers this year, which is nearly double that of a decade back.

“India has unquestionably yet to fully realize its aviation potential; air capacity is just one-fifth of that in the United States, and almost four times smaller than China,” OAG said.

A June post by the U.S. Trade and Development Agency estimates India to have ordered 1,150 aircraft over the previous 18 months at a cost of more than $150 billion.

“Indian airlines, including Air India, Indigo, and Akasa, continue to support U.S. engine manufacturers, aircraft, and other U.S. aviation equipment and service suppliers,” it said.

Multiple American companies have made investments in India, including Collins Aerospace, which has poured $200 million into the engineering and manufacturing sectors in the country.

Aerospace company Pratt & Whitney has set up an engine training center in Hyderabad, India. It is the company’s biggest such facility outside of the United States.