Did Boeing set the terms for Air India Express' dry lease tender?

New Delhi: Air India Express, the low-cost arm of the national carrier Air India, has tendered for the dry lease of four Boeing 737-800 aircraft.
Nothing unusual except that the author of the online tender document is shown to be one Michael R. Sessions of Boeing Company.
Generally, when Air India issues a tender, it is the user department concerned that provides details for the tender to be uploaded on the airline's Web site.
But is this a case of a vendor helping the airline put up a tender for which it or one of its affiliates could be in the race?
Sources in Air India indicated that some help might have been sought from Boeing for the tender as the aircraft being leased are brand new. “The specifications for new aircraft keep changing. So, the airline might have sought help,” sources indicated, pointing out that the word documents sent to assist the Maharaja might have been inadvertently put up on the Web site.
When contacted about this issue, a Boeing spokesman said, “This is something that needs to be checked from Air India.”
Meanwhile, doubts are also being raised on whether the leasing proposal has been cleared by the Air India board. Sources indicated that at the last board meeting, there was opposition to leasing more aircraft.
However, the board, while not rejecting the proposal to lease more aircraft, called for a detailed report on how these planes would be utilized.
04/12/10 Ashwini Phadnis/Business Line

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