Air India finalising 'historic order' of new aircraft: CEO

"Even as we work on improving Air India, we have not shied away from other ambitious actions, such as merging Air India Express with Air Asia, or Vistara with Air India, or kicking off the establishment of a new InfoTech Centre, or an Aviation Academy. And that's not to mention our much talked-about short- and-medium term fleet expansion," he added.

Air India CEO Campbell Wilson on Friday announced that the flag carrier is finalising a "historic order" of new aircraft to strengthen its fleet as the airline marked a year of its take over by the Tata Group.

In a communication to Air India employees, the CEO said: "Finalising a historic order of new aircraft to power future growth."

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"Even as we work on improving Air India, we have not shied away from other ambitious actions, such as merging Air India Express with Air Asia, or Vistara with Air India, or kicking off the establishment of a new InfoTech Centre, or an Aviation Academy. And that's not to mention our much talked-about short- and-medium term fleet expansion," he added.

As per industry sources and reports, the order may include 190 Boeing 737 MAX planes, 20 Boeing 787s and 10 Boeing 777X planes.

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The sources said that this is nearly half of the order of the total of 495 jets which the airline has planned in the coming weeks to stay competitive in the aviation market.

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Tata Group took over debt-laden Air India a year ago, on January 27, 2022, from the Central government, marking the beginning of a new journey for the carrier.

In November 2022, Singapore Airlines (SIA) and Tata Sons agreed to merge Air India and Vistara, with SIA investing $250 million in Air India as part of the transaction.

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With the integration, Air India became the only Indian airline group to operate both full-service and low-cost passenger services.

It can optimise its route network and resource utilisation, be flexible and agile in capturing demand across market segments, and tap on a larger consumer base to strengthen its loyalty programme. This would reinforce its position as India's largest international carrier and second largest domestic carrier, allow it to offer more options and connectivity for business and leisure customers, and enable it to compete as a leading global airline.

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The present management at Air India is driving the five-year transformation roadmap under the aegis of Vihaan.AI to establish itself as a world-class global airline with an Indian heart.

Air India Express gets new tail art, thanks to Kochi biennale

The Air India Express has unveiled a new tail art developed at the Kochi-Muziris Biennale and installed on Boeing 737-800 aircraft VT-AXN.

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The 25-feet-long tail art is an adaptation of an original acrylic painting by artist G.S.Smitha that depicts a parallel timeline through the planes of memory, recreating colorful landscapes filled with chameleons, grasshoppers, micro-organisms and aquatic creatures.

According to soures, the metaphysical painting simultaneously reveals the enigma of tiny creatures and the enormity of hills and flowerbeds.

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The unveiling event took place at a hangar of Air India Engineering Services Limited situated at Thiruvananthapuram International Airport on the occasion of Republic day.

P.A. Mohamed Riyas, State Minister of Public Works and Tourism who unveiled it said, back in 1935, Mr Tata's first plane landed in this very Thiruvananathapuram international airport and we have seen many such milestones in Kerala.

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"The vibrant tail art that carries the culture of India and this unique partnership between Air India Express and Kochi Biennale shows their commitment to art and culture," said Riyas.

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The 5th edition of Kochi-Muziris Biennale festival, which began in December 2022 will continue till April 2023. It's Asia's largest contemporary art festival and Air India and Air India Express are the official travel partners for the festival.

Aloke Singh, CEO of Air India Express said, "Kochi - Muziriz Biennale has emerged as one of its kind art event in the country, and by placing a piece of art developed by Biennale on our aircraft, we take the spirit of Biennale to the overseas. I am sure this will go a long way strengthening the tourism potential of this art event."

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