Air India and Interglobe Aviation, operator of Indigo, have been given the nod by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to import aircraft, the Ministry of Civil Aviation announced in a statement on July 31.
The press release said Air India and Interglobe Aviation have been granted in-principle approval for import of 470 and 500 aircraft, respectively.
The statement also said that the cost of acquiring these aircraft, which is a commercial transaction between the airline and the Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs), is not available with it.
Availability of parking slots is ensured at the time of grant of No Objection Certificate (NOC) for actual import of aircraft, the ministry's statement said. As per the induction plan of the airlines, the aircraft are proposed to be imported during 2023-2035.
According to Air India's plans, it is seeking to import a total of 210 A320 Neo aircraft, 140 B737 aircraft, 40 A350 aircraft, 10 B777-9 aircraft, 20 B787-9 aircraft, and 50 B737-8 aircraft.
Indigo is aiming to import 500 A320 Neo aircraft.
Currently, Air India manages close to 220 aircraft across all four airlines, and IndiGo has close to 315 aircraft.
In June, IndiGo, the country’s largest carrier by market share and fleet, announced a mammoth deal for 500 aircraft of the Airbus 320neo family on the first day of the Paris air show.
This deal came five months after Air India announced its mega order for 470 aircraft, IndiGo’s order not only eclipses that deal but also complements it as two of India’s leading carriers look to make a mark globally.
Calling the mega-orders for more than 900 passenger jets placed by IndiGo and Air India a testament to India’s unprecedented growth potential, civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said in June that these orders would help fast track the growth of the country’s aviation ecosystem.
He had pointed out how every $1 invested in the civil aviation sector yielded $1.3 in terms of new growth as well each direct job created resulted in another 6 indirect jobs being created.
The DGCA's approval comes at a time when airlines in India operating around 700 aircraft at the moment grapple with parking challenges.
Two of the biggest airports in India - ie, in Delhi and Mumbai - used as hub airports for flight operations by various Indian airlines as well as bases for their pilots and cabin crew, have a combined parking capacity of 364 aircraft for the close to 700 planes among them.
There are 233 parking stands in Delhi for narrowbody and widebody planes, according to the Aeronautical Informational Publication, and 131 for narrowbodies in Mumbai.
Delhi and Mumbai airports account for one in three domestic and international flights.
Parking space in airports is a major concern, but the country has already started to address this problem.
The upcoming Noida International Airport in Jewar will become operational by 2024 end and provide 25 parking stands.
Similarly, Mumbai is expected to get Navi Mumbai airport, and the Bengaluru airport has also been fast enhancing its capacity
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has also plans to add 273 parking bays at 24 airports to help resolve parking issues.
AAI is also trying to increase airside capacity by increasing work efficiency to address this congestion problem
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