INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Airbus in talks with Tatas, Indian carriers for A350XWB aircraftEuropean aircraft manufacturer Airbus is in talks with Tata Group and Indian
carriers for a deal regarding the procurement of its wide-bodied A350XWB planes, President and MD of Airbus India - South Asia, Remi
Maillard, said on Monday.The Tata Group currently runs four Indian carriers — Air India, Air India Express, Vistara and AirAsia
India.Wide-bodied planes like A350XWB have larger fuel tanks that allow them to travel long distances compared to narrow-bodied aircraft
A350XWB aircraft can travel above 8,000 nautical miles, with a flying time of approximately 18 hours in one flight.When asked if Airbus is
in talks with Tata and Indian carriers for the A350XWB aircraft deal, Maillard said, "We are obviously in talks with all airlines
The new owner of Air India — Tatas — are existing customers of Airbus." "Tatas have Vistara and AirAsia India with them, as we know
We have developed a long-standing, trustful and respected relationship with the Tata Group," he stated at a press conference here.The Centre
had sold Air India and Air India Express to the Tata Group in September
Maillard said Tatas are Airbus's partner in the defence business too."We are industrialising and manufacturing together with our C-295
military transport aircraft for the Indian Air Force (IAF)," he noted."Of course, we will be privileged to continue supporting the ambition
of the Tata Group in the aviation sector across all the complete spectrum," he added.He said that the wide-bodied aircraft fleet in India
has remained stagnant for the last 20 years.He noted that the single-aisle aircraft fleet has multiplied by a factor of six in the same
period."We predict a 6.2 per cent yearly average growth for the air traffic out of India
The world average is at 3.9 per cent," Mr Maillard noted.He said that Airbus is "quite bullish" on the international long-haul market out of
India."We believe the kind of revolution we have witnessed in the domestic traffic in the last 20 years will now happen in the long haul
"We believe that the new generation aircraft, the A350, will be the trigger for this revolution in the international long haul market," the
MD added.(This story has not been edited by TheIndianSubcontinent staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
