Air India - Wings of Change

Air India's king-sized aircraft order will give it ammunition in its bid to capture 30 per cent market share in the Indian skies

- Manish Pant

Air India, now a part of the Tata group, may abandon the Maharaja mascot as the airline’s management perceives the caricature of the mustachioed emperor in red livery as “outdated”. However, that may not prevent the 90-year-old carrier from soon announcing a king-size order for 500 wide- and narrow-body planes.

As the initial disbelief at the news—reported by Reuters citing unnamed industry sources—made way for acceptance, speculation mounted about the structure of the proposed deal that may be worth more than $100 billion. It is expected that the order, not yet confirmed by the Tatas, may comprise a mix of 400 single-aisle narrow-body and 100 wide-body jets from both Boeing and Airbus.