Boeing 737 MAX
Rakesh Jhunjhunwala backed Akasa Air orders 72 Boeing 737 MAX aircrafts
Mumbai/IBNS:Billionaire investor Rakesh Jhunjhunwala backed Indian startup -- Akasa Air -- on Tuesday placed an order for 72 Boeing 737 MAX jets, valued at nearly $9 billion, media reports said.
The deal comes after a month India's aviation regulator allowed the airlines in India to fly MAX jet, ending its nearly two and a half years of regulatory grounding following two crashes in five months that killed 346 people.
According to a Money Control report, Akasa plans to hit the skies by the summer of 2022 with its fleet of 737s to meet the growing demand across India.
“Valued at nearly $9 billion at list prices, the order is a key endorsement of the 737 family's capability to serve the rapidly growing Indian market,” Boeing said in a separate statement, according to Money Control.
“Akasa Air’s order includes two variants from the 737 MAX family, the 737-8 and the high-capacity 737-8-200. Providing the lowest seat-mile costs for a single-aisle airplane as well as high dispatch reliability and an enhanced passenger experience, the 737 MAX will ensure Akasa Air has a competitive edge in its dynamic home market,” the statement added.
Rakesh jhunjhunwala, known as "India's Warren Buffett" has joined former chief executives of IndiGo, the country's biggest carrier, and Jet Airways to tap into demand for domestic air travel, which has surged greatly in October above pre-Covid levels as country recovers from a devastating Covid-19 outbreak earlier this year.
"We are already witnessing a strong recovery in air travel, and we see decades of growth ahead of us," Akasa Air Chief Executive Vinay Dube said at the Dubai airshow, where the order was announced, reported Reuters.
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