 "Campbell Wilson, CEO, Air India")
Air India's first A350 aircraft is currently undergoing internal modifications and will soon be painted with new livery, with plans to enter service in December this year, the airline's Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director, Campbell Wilson, said on Friday.
Air India acquired the A350 aircraft through a lease transaction between its subsidiary AI Fleet Services Limited (AIFS), based in GIFT City, and the British bank HSBC. This marks the airline's first financing transaction from the 470-aircraft order placed in February.
“As well as Air India being the first Indian carrier to acquire the A350, this transaction makes us the first scheduled carrier to use the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City), and the aircraft the first wide-body to have been leased through India’s first International Financial Services Centre (IFSC)," Wilson told employees in a message.
Air India Express — Air India's low-cost subsidiary — received the first two B737 Max aircraft from Boeing this week. These planes are also part of the 470-aircraft order.
“The A350 is now undergoing some interior and technical modifications and will receive a new coat of paint with the new Air India livery, so will only enter Indian skies in December. However, the B737 Max aircraft will arrive much sooner. In fact, the first one is winging its way to India as I write,” Wilson said.
Wilson also mentioned that the company this week inaugurated a new Emergency Command Centre (ECC) at its headquarters in Gurugram, replacing two erstwhile Air India facilities that were well “past their prime.”
“This new, state-of-the-art facility would be where, in the event of a crisis affecting Air India or our alliance partners, our actions would be decided, coordinated, and overseen. While we all hope that we never have to actively use this facility, the ECC gives us a world-class base equipped with the latest technology so that we can respond with the best possible support,” he said.
The ECC launch was preceded by a town hall on emergency response planning and will be followed in the coming weeks and months by a series of mock drills. These drills are designed to prepare and test Air India's employees and processes, ensuring that the airline is as well-prepared as possible in the event of a real crisis.
In February, Air India placed an order for a total of 470 planes—250 from the European aircraft manufacturer Airbus and 220 from Boeing. This order ranks as the world's second-largest single-tranche aircraft acquisition. The Boeing order comprises 190 B737 Max, 20 B787s and 10 B777s. It is expected that 50 of the 190 Max planes ordered will join Air India Express's fleet by December next year.
The Tata Group took charge of Air India in January of the previous year. Currently, the conglomerate is in the process of merging Vistara into Air India. It is also in the process of merging Air India Express with AirAsia India to create a single low-cost subsidiary.
