AI to return 5 Rental B777-200 LR aircraft by March 2026 to Delta Air Lines

Mumbai, September 12 (PTI) Air India will return the five rented Boeing 777-200 LR aircraft to the US Delta Air Lines by March next year, according to sources. Out of these five aircraft, two have already been taken out of service for maintenance works, the sources told Pti. As these broad body aircraft are returned in a phased way, the airline will make changes in its flights operating to North America. “Five of our Boeing 777-200lrs are returned to their landlord at the end of the lease of the plane. Accordingly, we, according to plan, transferred select US routes from the B777-200lrs to our B777-300ers and adjusted our flight schedules to North America while securing minimal disruptions. The five Boeing 777-200 lr (long distance) aircraft were rented from Delta Air Lines and earlier some of these aircraft had technical problems, the sources said. According to sources, Air India was earlier in search of the rent and also showed interest in acquiring these refurbished aircraft, but Delta decided to sell the plane to another party. Currently, Tata Group-Owned Air India has a fleet of 187 aircraft-127 narrow body and 60 broad body aircraft. The airline has 22 Boeing 777s-19 B777-300 ers (extensive range) and 3 B777-200 LRS, 32 Boeing 787s-26 B787-8s and 6 B787-9s, and 6 A350s. The narrow body fleet has A319s, A320 CEOs and Neos, CEOs and Neo’s of A321. Global supply-chaining affected aircraft deliveries and airlines have chosen for short-term measures, such as taking aircraft on rental to operate more flights amid rising air traffic demand. With a lesser number of aircraft in its fleet, Air India will have restrictions on expanding its long-term and ultra-long-term flight network in the short term. After the exit of the two of these five aircraft, Air India has already moved its Delhi-SFO flight on a B777-300er, which was previously operated by a Delta Air-Rental B777-200LR, sources said. Air India Executive Chief and Managing Director Campbell Wilson told Pti in June this year: “I think it (supply chain situation) is gradually getting better. There are still restrictions in a number of areas … It is gradually getting better over the years, but it will still think up to 2029 or 2030.”