agencies
NEW DELHI, Dec 23: Air India's first wide-body A350-900 aircraft, sporting new brand livery, arrived here from European aviation major Airbus' Toulouse facility in France.
The aircraft, registered as VT-JRA, touched down at the National Capital's Indira Gandhi International Airport at 1346 hrs, making the Tata Group-owned airline the first aircraft operator in India to have this type of aircraft in its fleet, a statement said.
The delivery flight is operated using a special call sign AI350, it said.
The aircraft is the first of Air India's 20 Airbus A350-900 on order, with five more scheduled for delivery through March 2024, the airline said.
As part of its now rejigged 250 aircraft order with Airbus, Air India will acquire 40 A350s, comprising 20 each A350-900 and A350-1000 aircraft, along with 140 narrow-body A321neo and 70 A320neo planes.
The arrival of the first Airbus A350-900 is, in many ways, "a declaration of Indian aviation's resurgence on the world stage," Air India Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director Campbell Wilson said. |
