Air India nears historic order for up to 500 jets

Bold move: People ride past a wall painted with Air India aircraft in Mumbai. The airline wants to win a bigger share of regional international traffic and the domestic market, setting up a battle on both fronts with IndiGo. — AP

NEW DELHI: Air India is close to placing landmark orders for as many as 500 jetliners worth tens of billions of dollars from both Airbus and Boeing as it carves out an ambitious renaissance under the Tata Group conglomerate, industry sources say.

The orders include as many as 400 narrow-body jets and 100 or more wide-bodies, including dozens of Airbus A350s and Boeing 787s and 777s, they said, speaking on condition of anonymity as finishing touches are placed on the mammoth deal in coming days.