The Maharaja Needs To Invest In New Aircrafts

Now that the Tatas are in charge of Air India, new aircraft will be the key to the turnaround and success of the airline. How soon that happens is critical to the success of the airline. Ameya Joshi reports

- Ameya Joshi

Air India has handed over five A321s to the Indian Air Force (IAF) and the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). This is in addition to the A319 already handed over. These five airframes as per flight tracking website FlightRadar24, are VT-PPA, VT-PPB, VT-PPD, VT-PPE and VT-PPF. All of these were delivered in 2007 and are over 14 years old. At least four more A321s are not operational. This is in addition to the A319 which was already transferred.

The A319s aren't fully operational either. Of the 21 A319s in operation, 13 haven't flown for a very long time, data on FlightRadar24 says. These are the issues which the Tata Group have inherited. As far as improving on-time performance, inflight service and overall experience on the ground and in sky are concerned, the highest importance will have to be accorded to the depleting fleet!

In a country where over half the market is with one player and the Tata Group plans to consolidate its multiple offerings over a period of time to ensure that they come out as a reasonably strong player to take on the might and navigate their way to profitability, a depleting fleet is the biggest worry. Not only that, a depleting fleet could also signal excess staff, leading to lower utilisation of precious resources like pilots as well as slots at airports.

PIM and the changing fleet