NEW DELHI :Tata Group-backed Air India is set to induct the first of the 470 aircraft it had ordered, with the Airbus A350 expected to arrive at Delhi airport Saturday morning, people aware of the development told Mint.
Air India received regulatory approvals for engineering line maintenance of the A350 aircraft from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation earlier this month.
“The aircraft will be put into commercial domestic flight operations for metro-to-metro connectivity by the end of January as it will take at least 3-4 weeks since its arrival in India to complete extensive checks and approvals,” an Air India official said.
The A350-900 will be able to offer 16-17 hours of non-stop flight time, with a maximum range of up to 20 hours, according to its manufacturer, Airbus. For Air India, the aircraft is expected to provide a competitive edge in the long-haul segment from India.
The A350-900 is among 70 wide-body aircraft ordered by Air India. According to Airbus, it burns 25% less fuel than the older generation of the aircraft.
Air India had in February placed an order for 70 wide-body aircraft and 400 narrow-body aircraft with Boeing and Airbus. The order comprises 40 Airbus A350s, 20 Boeing B787s, and 10 Boeing B777-9s wide-body aircraft, as well as 210 Airbus A320/321 Neos and 190 Boeing B737 MAX single-aisle aircraft.
In the Rolls Royce engine-powered A350 category, Air India had ordered 34 Airbus A350-1000s and six A350-900 wide-body jets. It later modified its order to 20 aircraft each of both the segments.
The first six A350s to be inducted by Air India were earlier part of the delivery schedule of Russian airline Aeroflot. These aircraft are configured with 28 business class seats, 24 premium economy seats, and 264 economy seats.
In the run-up to the induction of the aircraft, the airline sent engineers from Air India, Vistara and AIX Connect, also owned by Tata Group, to undergo training at the Airbus centre in Toulouse to ensure that all necessary checks, maintenance, and repairs are available from the outset at the Air India facilities.
“Around 50 engineers have already been trained and are in the process of getting the licence to approve checks on this aircraft. As we increase the number of this aircraft in our fleet, the engineering and maintenance team strength for A350 will also increase,” a second official aware of the development said.
“We will induct five more A350-900 by March-April. We expect these to be operational by May,” he added.
With a maiden A350, the airline has also been working to get approvals for creating manuals for operations, engineering, ground handling, and ensuring availability of spares. Once the aircraft arrives in India, it will take 3-4 weeks to complete all the checks, including to ensure emergency evacuation precautions and extensive documentation.
The aircraft is expected to be deployed on domestic flights in the initial phase.
An Airbus spokesperson told Mint that the European aerospace major is working with Air India for the preparation of entry into service of the A350, including offering pilot and maintenance training and all validations by the Indian regulator.
“As with all our other commercial aircraft, the A350 will have key parts and technologies designed, built and maintained in India. Many of their components and parts will come from Indian companies, and advanced technologies will come from the Airbus India Engineering Centre in Bengaluru,” the spokesperson added.
Airbus expects a robust growth in the long-haul market from India over the next 10 years as there is headroom for growth with India’s per capita air travel at just 0.12%.
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