Airbus and Boeing slug it out for top slot in Indian aviation sector

MUMBAI: The battle between the world's top two plane manufactures for supremacy in the Indian skies is turning into a war. For now, Airbus has an advantage. The European plane maker has 196 of its commercial passenger aircraft flying in India, compared with Boeing's 160. Airbus' outstanding orders for 516 planes — no-frills airline IndiGo alone is buying 430 A320s — make the lead look like a lasting one.

India's newest local carriers, Tata Sons joint venture Vistara and AirAsia India, have both picked Airbus as their initial choice. Boeing's visible backlog is much smaller at 59 planes, which include long-haul Dreamliners to Air India and Jet AirwaysBSE -0.06 % as well as narrow-bodied 737Max planes to SpiceJet. There have been talks of an order for fifty 737Max from Jet, but that hasn't been announced. The US manufacturer is hoping for orders when airlines like Vistara expand.

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