Airbus has emerged as the front-runner to win an aircraft order worth as much as $5.5 billion from Jet Airways India Ltd., citing sources, news agency Bloomberg reported on Monday.
This move will solidify the European planemaker’s hold in the world’s fastest-growing aviation market, according to the report.
Airbus and Jet Airways are holding discussions for A320neo jets and A220 planes, sources said, while adding that Boeing Co. and Embraer SA are also in talks with Jet and no final decision has been taken. Although, at sticker prices, any transaction would be north of $5 billion, discounts are common in such large purchases.
Representatives for Boeing and Airbus didn’t immediately respond to Bloomberg’s requests for comment.
Jet Airways, once India’s top private airline, got its flying licence last month, marking the first time a carrier has been revived under the nation’s new bankruptcy laws. The flying permit validated the airline’s operational readiness, signalling its transforming into a “new avatar with fresh funding, changed ownership, and new management,” according to a statement.
“We are in final negotiations with lessors and OEMs for aircraft, and we will announce our aircraft choice and fleet plan once we have made a decision,” a representative for Jet Airways said Monday. “We are studying all possibilities to find the one that works best for us.”
Meanwhile, Tata Group-owned Air India is also planning to order as many as 300 narrow-body jets.
The report mentioned that this deal could be one of the largest orders in commercial aviation history as the formerly state-run airline looks to overhaul its fleet under new ownership.
The sources said that Air India likely to order Airbus SE’s A320neo family jets or Boeing Co.’s 737 MAX models.