New Delhi: Tata-owned Air India on Friday announced that it has completed the acquisition of its first A350-900 aircraft by way of a finance lease transaction with HSBC through the GIFT City. It is pertinent to note here that this development marks the pioneering instance of leasing a wide-body aircraft through the GIFT City, the country’s first International Financial Services Centre (IFSC).
The transaction was facilitated by AI Fleet Services Limited (AIFS), a 100% subsidiary of Air India, and a GIFT IFSC-registered finance company, the statement added. In a release, the airline said the transaction was facilitated by its wholly-owned subsidiary AI Fleet Services Limited (AIFS) and is also the first financing transaction from the orders for 470 aircraft that were made earlier this year.
"Air India’s first A350-900 is also the first widebody aircraft to have been leased through India’s first International Financial Services Centre (IFSC). The transaction was facilitated by AI Fleet Services Limited (AIFS), a 100 per cent subsidiary of Air India, and a GIFT IFSC-registered finance company," the airline said.
Air India is currently undergoing an ambitious transformation plan and it anticipates that the first A350-900 aircraft will be delivered to India by the year's end. "This landmark transaction marks the beginning of our aircraft leasing business from GIFT IFSC, as AIFS will be the primary Air India Group entity for widebody aircraft financing, playing a pivotal role in the future aircraft financing strategy for us and our subsidiaries," Nipun Aggarwal, Chief Commercial & Transformation Officer, Air India, said in the statement.
International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) Executive Director Dipesh Shah said that it has been working with the stakeholders to develop regulatory enablers for aircraft leasing and financing. "The steps taken by Air India by establishing a finance company for the purpose of aircraft leasing and financing at IFSC will go a long way in developing IFSC as a preferred destination for aircraft leasing and financing in India as well as globally," he added.
The airline has ordered six A350-900 planes and five of them are scheduled for delivery through March 2024. Apart from these, the airline's firm orders for 470 new aircraft include 34 A350-1000s, 20 Boeing 787 Dreamliners, 10 Boeing 777Xs, 140 A320 Neos, 70 A321 Neos and 190 Boeing 737MAXs. At the moment, Air India has a fleet of 116 planes, including 49 wide-body aircraft.
The total includes 27 B787-8s, 14 B777-300s, 8 B777-200LRs, 14 A319s, 36 A320 Neos, 13 A321 ceos and 4 A321 Neos. This development came a day after the airline announced its collaboration with celebrity designer Manish Malhotra to design new uniforms for its nearly 10,000 employees, which is being seen as a major step towards the transformation.
