India’s newest airline, Akasa Air, said on Thursday it has ordered 150 Boeing 737 MAX planes as it looks to bolster its fleet and kick off international operations.
The deal is a shot in the arm for US aviation giant Boeing, which is under intense global scrutiny over its 737 MAX 9 jet, after a scare on an Alaska Airlines jet in early January when a panel came off mid-flight and forced an emergency landing.
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Akasa Air CEO Vinay Dube said the “historic” order for 737 MAX 10 and 737 MAX 8-200 jets would put the carrier on the path to “becoming one of the top 30 leading airlines in the world.”
Akasa has been a strong Boeing backer, having ordered 72 aircraft in 2021, and another four in 2023, and Dube said Akasa’s growth illustrates the“promise that India holds as an aviation market.”
But the order does not include Boeing’s MAX 9 aircraft involved in the Alaska Airline scare.
No Indian airline uses the Boeing MAX 9 plane.
The country’s aviation regulator said two weeks ago that its check of the 737 8 MAX aircraft had been completed satisfactorily.
Since it started flying in 2022, Akasa has garnered a market share of 4 per cent, while bigger rival IndiGo has the largest share at 60 percent and Tata Group airlines have a combined 26 percent.
Akasa plans to fly to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Qatar in the first phase of its international expansion, Praveen Iyer, its chief commercial officer told Reuters.
The order was announced at the “Wings India” air show in the southern city of Hyderabad, which has attracted planemakers, airlines and government officials as they make the most of India’s travel boom, with a greater focus on international routes.
Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said he expects the country’s fleet size to surge to 2,000 in the next decade from about 700 currently.
Source: alarabiya