National carrier Air India has invited bids for the sale and leaseback of all its newly acquired Boeing 787 aircraft from prospective lessors by the first week of February. All the six 787 aircraft Air India bought have been grounded since Jan. 17 on a directive from the U.S. FAA following two separate battery failures in 787s operated by Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways. In a Request for Proposal (RFP), dated Jan. 23, the airline has invited quotations from lessors on or before Feb. 5.
IndiGo, India’s leading low-cost carrier, has taken delivery of its first Airbus A320 aircraft, equipped with fuel-saving sharklet technology. Sharklets are newly designed wing-tip devices that Airbus says improve the aircraft’s aerodynamics and significantly cut the airline’s fuel burn and emissions by 4% on longer sectors. President Aditya Ghosh says IndiGo is the first Indian carrier to have an aircraft equipped with sharklets. All future A320 aircraft to be delivered to IndiGo will be fitted with the devices, he adds.
