Air India to go ahead with Dreamliner aircraft buy

New Delhi: Air India has decided to go ahead and purchase the 27 Dreamliner aircraft from Boeing despite poor financials and doubts about its ability to repay the 17,000-crore loans needed for the planes.
The Air India board, which met in New Delhi on Thursday, agreed that the 27 aircraft are essential to expand operations and swing the airline back into profitability. Rohit Nandan, the chairman and managing director, said that the board has recommended purchase but declined to elaborate. The recommendation will now be discussed by the group of ministers (GoM) who will take the final call when they meet some time next month.
The national carrier's fortunes have plummeted in recent years, thanks to rising fuel prices, the global slowdown and a hastily-arranged, ill-advised merger with Indian Airlines. Its monthly loss ( 600 crore) is equivalent to the market cap of a small-cap company and its brand image has been badly dented by a series of mishaps both in the air and on the ground. It has accumulated losses of 13,000 crore.
16/09/11 Economic Times

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Categories: Air India Sep 2011