No takers for Air India's dry-lease plan

MUMBAI: There seem to be no takers for the five Boeing 777s which the cash-strapped Air India is trying to dry-lease for 6-10 year period, apparently because of the poor seat configuration.

"The airline has floated tenders to lease out these B 777-200 LR (long range) aircraft as many as three times in the last nine months. But so far it has failed to clinch a deal due to the poor seat configuration," Air India sources said.

On September 3, AI invited bids for dry-leasing five Boeing 777s for the third time this year. Since January the airline has been desperately trying to do away with these aircraft, following the decision to operate the 787 Dreamliners in their place. The first of the 27 Boeing Dreamliners, ordered in January 2006, landed on Saturday in Delhi.

The carrier had acquired the 777s as a part of its 67 aircraft order from Boeing over six years ago. At present, it has 20 Boeing 777s, of which eight are 777-200 LRs, while the rest are 777-300 ERs (extended range planes).