More than two months after receiving its first Airbus A321neo aircraft, Air India has started using it for commercial services. The airline already operates a fleet of Airbus A320 family of aircraft, including the previous generation A321. But the neo version of the plane is a recent addition as part of the carrier’s fleet expansion program.
Air India has put its first A321neo to use for revenue service. The aircraft, with registration number VT-RTD, was delivered to the carrier in March. ch-aviation cites ADS-B data to reveal that the plane began flying commercially on June 10th.
VT-RTD initially flew on the busy Delhi-Mumbai sector and operated five sectors on June 11th and 12th. Data from Flightradar24.com reveals that Air India has been utilizing the aircraft on domestic routes, covering major destinations, including Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Lucknow, and Chennai. At the time of writing, the plane had just taken off from Hyderabad for Mumbai for flight AI 616.
Air India has received four A321neos so far. The first (VT-RTD) was delivered on March 23rd, the second (VT-RTC) on March 28th, the third (VT-RTB) on April 26th, and the fourth (VT-RTE) on May 16th. All four planes are powered with CFM LEAP 1A Engines.
These planes, however, are not part of Air India’s recent order with Airbus. The airline announced massive orders with Boeing and Airbus last month, comprising 470 planes. Of these, Airbus’ share included 250 aircraft, which included 140 A320neos and 70 A321neos.
Air India had planned to induct more than 35 aircraft on lease to meet its immediate operational demands. These new A321neos were initially destined for Russian carriers, but the sanctions on the country have led to several Russia-bound planes going to different airlines. Air India saw an opportunity and bagged a deal.
15/06/2023 Gaurav Joshi/Simple Flying
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