Summary
- India’s aviation industry has immense potential and could benefit from adding more widebody aircraft to meet growing demand on popular domestic routes.
- Air India currently owns the majority of widebody planes in India, with 49 in its fleet, followed by Vistara and IndiGo.
- Indian airlines, including Air India and IndiGo, are boosting their fleet by placing significant orders for both narrowbody and widebody aircraft from manufacturers like Airbus and Boeing.
To keep India’s aviation industry growing, experts suggest that the country might need around 130 to 150 widebody aircraft. In a recent interview with PTI News, Vikram Rai, the CEO of GE Aerospace South Asia, explained that as Indian airlines keep growing, they might also use more of these big planes on popular domestic routes.
Witnessing immense potential
India stands as the world’s third-largest civil aviation market, after the United States and China, boasting more than 650 commercial planes currently in operation. Among this fleet, only more than 55 are widebody aircraft, according to ch-aviation.com.
Photo: BoeingMan777/Shutterstock
The lion’s share of these widebody planes belongs to India’s national carrier, Air India, with a total of 49 widebody aircraft, including 27 Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners and 22 Boeing 777 jets. In addition to Air India’s widebody fleet, Vistara operates five Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners. Another airline that operates widebody aircraft, specifically two wet-leased 777s, is IndiGo, as per Planespotters.net.
Vikram Rai, from GE Aerospace, highlighted India’s immense potential, stating that “India holds a central and high-priority position in GE Aerospace’s market focus.” He further noted that he views the utilization of widebody aircraft as a mutually beneficial growth strategy for both the company and India, presenting a “win-win scenario.”
Indian carriers boosting their fleet
Indeed, Indian airlines are on a path of significant growth trajectory. In early 2023, Air India placed a historic order for 470 aircraft split between Airbus and Boeing.
Air India’s order for Airbus jets, estimated to be worth around $34 billion based on market value, will add 210 Airbus A320neo narrowbodies for its short and medium-haul operations, along with 40 Airbus A350 widebodies. Meanwhile, the flag carrier’s order for Boeing comprised 190 Boeing 737 MAX, 20 Boeing 787s, and 10 of the new Boeing 777X widebodies.
Photo: Yatrik Sheth/Shutterstock
It was not just Air India making a move this year. The low-cost carrier IndiGo also placed a mammoth order for 500 Airbus A320 family jets. IndiGo has been a significant customer for Airbus over the years. In fact, the airline currently has around 970 of these outstanding orders in its queue, as per ch-aviation.com.
The relatively new entrant to India’s aviation market, Akasa Air, has also been expanding its aircraft fleet. This year, the low-cost carrier placed an order for four additional Boeing 737 MAX 8 jets to support its international growth plans. The airline presently operates a fleet of 20 737 MAX jets and is awaiting the delivery of 56 more.
What are your thoughts on this? Do you believe India could further its growth by adding more widebody aircraft? Let us know in the comments section below.
Sources: PTI News, ch-aviation.com, Planespotters.net