Airbus sees 12 Superjumboes in Air India fleet

Airbus estimates Air India requiring at least 12 A380s in their fleet in the next three to four years,company executives said.

"According to our studies, the A380 will be ideal for Air India. There can be at least 12-13 such aircraft in their fleet" said Airbus CEO, John Leahy, while talking to reporters on the sidelines of a press meet.

Factors working for the aircraft he said were its fuel efficiency among other things. The A380 burns 2.9 litres of ATF every 100 kilometres per kilometre.

Air India has been considering both the A380s and the 747-8 the two superjumbo aircraft from Airbus and Boeing respectively. Till now, Kingfisher is the only Indian carrier to order for 5 A380s, delivery of which will begin from 2010-11.

Kingfisher plans to use it for its long haul operations to the US.

Talking about their sales Kiran Rao, president, Airbus (India) said that, they had a 70 per cent share in terms of the new aircraft orders including passenger and cargo aircraft. The estimate was that India would require 1,100 aircraft worth 105 billion dollars in the next 20 years, he said and added that the company was also focusing on the country's cargo market which would see a 75 per cent growth in the next four years, said Rao.