Delhi : Air India announced on December 9 that it has placed a fresh order for 100 Airbus aircraft in a significant boost to its fleet expansion.

The new order includes 10 widebody A350 planes and 90 narrowbody jets from the A320 family, such as the A321neo.

Natarajan Chandrasekaran, Chairman, Tata Sons and Air India, highlighted the strategic rationale behind the move. "With India's passenger growth outpacing the rest of the world, its significantly improving infrastructure and an aspirational young population increasingly going global, we see a clear case for Air India to expand its future fleet," he said.

The purchase is set to bolster Air India's operational capabilities and underscores the airline's aggressive push for growth under the Tata Group's ownership, said reports.

The latest move comes in addition to the massive 470 aircraft order that Air India placed with Airbus and Boeing in 2023, taking the airline's total Airbus purchases in 2023 from 250 to 350 planes.

With 344 new Airbus now set to join the fleet in the coming years-six of which have already been delivered-Air India is making one of the largest fleet upgrades in the history of commercial aviation, claimed reports.

Air India also announced that it has selected Airbus' Flight Hour Services-Component (FHS-C) program to support maintenance for its expanding A350 fleet, ensuring operational efficiency as the airline transitions into its next phase of growth.

In addition to Airbus, Air India's orders with Boeing include 220 aircraft, of which, 185 are still to be delivered.

Together, these orders reflect the airline's vision to emerge as a global leader in aviation and meet the surging demand for air travel in India, concluded reports.