New Delhi: The Air India (AI) Board today (Nov 8) gave its nod to acquire 28 new aircraft as part of fleet expansion and the acquisition at a cost of about Rs 10,000 crore (Rs 100 billion).

As per the plan, approved by the Board chaired by K Roy Paul, Air India chairman and civil aviation secretary, the airline will acquire 10 long range and 18 short-range aircraft.

This was stated by Air India's director public relations Jeetendra Bhargava after the meeting.

The long-range aircraft are Airbus 340, while the 18 others are Boeing 737-800, he said.

The new craft would be powered by CFM engines, he added.

The corporation would send its fleet acquisition plan, approved after consideration of the report of the in- house techno-economic negotiating committee headed by its director operations Captain N K Hathi by the full board, to Ministry of Civil Aviation.

The new aircraft would be acquired over a period of five years and will replace the 14 existing ones that the corporation has taken on dry lease.

These include 11 Airbus 310 and three Boeing 747-200.

The board also decided to extend its ongoing voluntary retirement scheme from non-operational staffers to those in operational areas (including pilots and engineers), Bhargava, who also holds the charge of human resource development, said.

The Air-India board has also set up a committee to look into the possibilities of starting a low-cost carrier, Bhargava said.

"We are looking at a low-cost carrier at greater detail for which, a committee has been set up today," he said, but declined to give details.

The country's flagship carrier had planned to operate a low-cost carrier this year from Kochi as Air India Charters Ltd, but it was put off due to opposition from the employees' union.

The Rs 10,000 crore fleet acquisition project cost involves the purchase of technical infrastructure like training stimulators as well as training of pilots, Bhargava said.

The Airbus A340 has 272 seats, including 10 first class, 27 executive class and 235 economy class seats, while the Boeing 737-800 aircraft has 146 seats, including eight executive class and 138 economy class seats.

At present, the country's flagship carrier has a fleet of 33 aircraft.

PTI