Boeing claims better deal

Aircraft manufacturer says Air-India can get more value from its fleet

Boeing has claimed that buying its B-777-200 Extended Range aircraft instead of Airbus A340- 300 would be financially more advantageous for Air-India (A-I) . The aircraft major may even approach the civil aviation ministry in January with its proposal.

"The net present value (NPV) for a fleet of B-777-200 ERs is higher than that of A-340-300s. Based on objective calculations, the NPV for a B-777-200 is $40.6 million, or about Rs 186.8 crore, higher than that of an A-340-300 range for a total of $690 million, or around Rs 3175 crore, for a fleet of 17 airplanes," said Dinesh Keskar, Boeing's senior vice-president of sales.

The A-I board had last month approved the purchase of 28 new aircraft at a price of over Rs 10,000 crore. This included 10 A 340-300 aircraft in the medium capacity long range (MCLR) category and 18 B 737-800 aircraft in the small capacity short range (SCSR) category.

Boeing had offered the 777-200 ER in the MCLR category, which Keskar said was the 'right choice' for A-I as it could carry 31 more passengers than the 241-seater A 340-300, besides four tonnes of additional cargo. "This would enable A-I to achieve higher operating profit on the 17 aircraft compared with the A 340-300," Keskar said.

Boeing also welcomed the recent government decision to let private domestic carriers fly abroad, saying it would provide a major boost to the aviation sector. The move would bring about a significant increase in airline capacity and help A-I as well as Indian Airlines to fetch better value in any future privatisation, he added.

He said the Cabinet decisions and the recent recommendations of the Naresh Chandra Committee on civil aviation for 49 per cent private participation in A-I and IA were momentous in the history of the country's civil aviation sector.

"It will change the tourism potential, bring in more foreign exchange and also allow more business to be transacted. There will be a bigger demand to travel to and from India," Keskar said.