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National Carrier to Replace 26 Yrs Old A320s With Fuel-Efficient Planes on Gulf Routes

[New Delhi]National Carrier Plans to Replace Ageing A 320s With New Fuel-Efficient Planes on Gulf Routes
National carrier Air India plans to deploy new fuel-efficient planes on the Gulf routes, replacing A320 classic aircraft after questions were raised about safety of passengers flying its ageing fleet,
The airline currently has 15 Airbus A320 classic, including one on lease, in its fleet of 103 aircraft.
The state-run airline has already announced its plans to replace 19 A320 planes as part of its ageing A320s replacement programme.
It has entered into a deal with a Chinese firm for five sharklets-equipped A320 (ceo) aircraft and all these planes are to be inducted into the fleet for the winter schedule, which commences from the last Sunday of October.
Besides, the airline has also tied-up with a leading Kuwaiti aircraft lessor to dry lease another 14 A320Neos (new engine option) planes, which are to be inducted between April 2017 and March 2018.
The airline’s narrow-body fleet forum, Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) had in March sought grounding of the 26-yearold fleet of Airbus A320s by the aviation regulator DGCA on the ground that the planes were not “technically” fit to fly.
“The A-320 classic aircraft which are 26 years old (one of the oldest in the world) are being operated with repetitive snags endangering flight safety… DGCA should not permit AI to operate these lethal snag-prone classic aircraft for passenger safety,” ICPA had said in a letter to the DGCA, prompting a rebuttal by the airline.