NEW DELHI — India’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) injected a new communication satellite into orbit July 15, completing its 18th successful mission in a row. An extra-large PSLV rocket, PSLV-XL, was used to boost the GSAT-12 communication satellite into space. The launcher was similar to the one used for the launch of India’s Chandrayaan-1 Moon mission in 2008.

India’s federal government is committed to saving ailing national carrier Air India and clearing the airline’s huge debt, a senior civil aviation ministry official says. Air India has about 400 billion rupees ($9.07 billion) of debt, including 180 billion rupees in working capital loans taken from a consortium of banks and 220 billion rupees borrowed to acquire new aircraft. “The government is committed to Air India. We are bound by that commitment to revive Air India,” says Nasim Zaidi, secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation.

The Boeing 787 made its inaugural visit to India Wednesday morning as the airframer looks toward introduction of the aircraft into the fleets of some Indian airlines. There was a loud cheer by onlookers as the aircraft touched down and taxied to Terminal 3 at New Delhi Indira Gandhi International Airport at 11:10 a.m. local time. The aircraft, which can fly up to 16,000 km (9,600 miles) nonstop, is suitable for long-haul routes, such as Mumbai-Sydney, Delhi-Tokyo, Delhi-New York and Delhi-Toronto, says a senior Boeing official.