Indian Air India Express is set to take delivery of its first line-fit Boeing 737-8 Max aircraft today. The aircraft took off from Boeing’s Seattle manufacturing unit on Saturday morning, bound for Delhi. This would mark the airline’s first custom-designed addition to the fleet.
New milestone with custom aircraft
The new aircraft is Air India Express’ 51st Boeing 737-8 Max jet. The “custom-designed sustainable” 737-8 MAX, registered as VT-RNT, is dedicated to Tata Group‘s Chairman Emeritus, the late Ratan Naval Tata, with a special livery design, marking his 88th birthday. The aircraft will only have economy seats.
Both Air India and Air India Express have been flying white-tail aircraft in their fleet so far. These are planes that were meant for another airline but were then utilised by a different airline. The latest Boeing plane would mark its first customised aircraft.
Fleet expansion
The airline has been consistently expanding its fleet after Tata Group took over the loss-making Air India and the profit-making Air India Express in January 2022. After the takeover, Tata placed an order for a whopping 470 aircraft in a massive fleet expansion in February 2023 and for an additional 100 aircraft in December 2024.
Air India Express has crossed its 100-aircraft milestone, its Managing Director Aloke Singh told staff in a recent message. Its current fleet consists of 110 planes. Despite the huge orders, deliveries have remained slow amid global supply chain issues.
Overall, the airline added 25 new planes to its fleet this year, including 14 Boeing MAX jets, four Airbus A321neos, four A320neos, and three A320ceos. The airline plans to double its capacity in the next four to five years, it had said earlier this year.
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