Air India should be a world class airliner: Manmohan Singh

Turning a new leaf in its history after eleven years, Air India, the national carrier, today included a state-of-the-art Boeing 777-200LR ( Longer Range ) into its fleet.

By Sanjay Kumar

New Delhi, July 28 : Turning a new leaf in its history after eleven years, Air India, the national carrier, today included a state-of-the-art Boeing 777-200LR ( Longer Range ) into its fleet.

The new aircraft will offer the first direct flight between the US and India, starting August 1.

Handing over the newly acquired Boeing to Air India, Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh termed the day as" historic "and expressed hope that Air India will emerge as a world class airliner.

"Your business is not just about getting world class aircraft, but also about ensuring that world class service levels become the norm. I would like you to focus your attention on that aspect with greater renewed vigour. Our airports, our airlines and all related systems must be world class and must make every customer and client feel truly cared for. The time has come when India should aspire in all these activities to compete with the very best in the world," said Singh.

The new plane makes its inaugural flight from Mumbai to New York's John F Kennedy International Airport August 1. The airliner will receive an additional three 777-200LR Worldliners and three 777-300ER (Extended Range) airplanes this year.

Air India's order for 68 Boeing jetliners, placed in December 2005, was the largest commercial airplane order, worth 11.6 billion dollars, in India's civil aviation history in terms of price. The order consisted of 23 777s, including eight 777-200LR Worldliners and 15 777-300ERs, and 27 787-8 Dreamliners. dditionally, Air India Express, a wholly owned subsidiary of Air India, ordered 18 Next- Generation 737-800s.

Today, two planes of Air India Express and two modified cargo planes were also incorporated into the fleet. The former will operate in South East Asian and Gulf countries.

Complimenting Air India for its modernization effort, Dr. Singh hoped that "with the acquisition of these new aircrafts, our national carriers will be better placed to take on competition both at home and abroad. I understand that the aircraft presently on order will match up to the airlines' requirements in the domestic sector, regional sectors as well as long haul international sectors".

Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel expressed satisfaction over efforts to modernize the country's aviation sector. He hoped that with the opening of the sky and with the upgradation of the National Carrier at least "two million jobs will be opened for the youngsters in this sector".

He announced that from the early next year there will be a direct flight from Delhi to New York.

The 777 family of airplanes is popular with passengers and airlines because of its fuel-efficient twin-engine design, high reliability, low operating costs and comfortable and spacious interior. It is the market leader in the 300- to 400-seat segment, capturing more than 65 percent of that market.

Air India's 777-200LR will have a three-class configuration, including eight first-class cabins, 35 executive class and 195 economy seats. All executive class seats will turn into flat beds and economy seats will be larger, at 18.5 inches in width. Passengers also will have access to an in-flight entertainment system provided by Thales on video screens that measure 23 inches in first class, 15.4 inches in executive class and 10.6 inches in economy. Additionally, the airplane will be able to carry up to 15 tons of cargo.

Air India operates approximately 170 flights a week, carrying over five million passengers a year to 59 cities worldwide from various points in India. Its subsidiary, Air India Express, operates 116 services a week to 10 destinations in the Gulf and South East Asia.

Air India, which is celebrating its 75th year of operation this year, operates 24 weekly flights to the U.S., including a daily service to New York via London and a daily service to Newark, New Jersey, via Paris.

Interesting thing is that all the newly acquired Boeing 777-200LR will be named after different states. The first two have been called Andhra Pradesh and Assam.

With new fleet uniforms are also in for change with the designer Ritu Beri and Piere Cardin designing the new set of dress.

ANI