Air-India to spread wings

	Air-India to spread wings BS Reporter / Chennai/ Trichy March 29, 2007 http://www.business-standard.com/common/storypage.php?leftnm=lmnu1&subLeft=1&autono=279182&tab=र Air-India will add new destinations to its vast network once the process of fleet augmentation is complete. Talking to the media here on the sidelines of launching Air-India Express services, S Ranganathan, executive director - Ground Services, Air-India, said as soon as the airline strengthened its fleet, new destinations across the globe would be included in its network. Air-India has placed orders for 68 aircraft, of which 50 are meant for Air-India and the rest for its budget subsidiary Air India Express. Of the 50 aircraft, 23 will be 777 LR wide-bodied jets capable of flying 16 hours non-stop. The remaining 27 will be Boeing 787 aircraft. Seventeen aircraft are expected to be commissioned by the end of fiscal 2008, and the remaining orders are expected to fulfiled by 2010. He was hopeful that Air-India would be able to include four new destinations to the US by the end of fiscal 2008. The new destinations will be San Francisco, Houston, Dallas and Washington DC, besides New York, Chicago and Los Angeles, which are already on Air India’s flight path.