In a press briefing last week, Vistara reiterated that it is looking to lease Boeing 787s if the American manufacturer does not make deliveries soon. While the airline did not firmly say that it will temporarily take on leased aircraft, any further delays in deliveries will likely mean moving ahead with the expansion.

Still looking

It has been nearly a full year since Boeing was halted by the FAA from delivering any further 787s until rectifications were made on the production line. For Vistara, this has been a huge blow, with the Indian full-service airline hoping to have gotten all six of its Dreamliners in the sky by now.

Instead, it is stuck with two planes that are flying at their maximum safe operational limits of 12 flights per week. However, to continue its long-held expansion, Vistara has reiterated that leasing 787s is not out of the question, especially if Boeing announced further delays to its program.

Vistara 787
Photo: Vistara

At a press event last week, CEO Vinod Kannan said that while leasing is still under consideration, it would not be the ideal solution. Indeed, leasing will be expensive at a time when there is a global 787 shortage from the delivery pause (but widebody prices remain depressed overall due to the pandemic). For now, there are no firm commitments to lessors or airlines.

Coming soon?

Boeing has expressed hope that the pause in deliveries will end in the second half of 2022, hopefully just a few months away if all goes well. However, it does not seem so, with reports suggesting that the FAA has rejected Boeing's proposed changes submitted in April.

Boeing 787 Dreamliner
Ongoing 787 delivery delays are expected to be costing Boeing in the region of $5.5 billion. Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying

It's impossible to tell if this rejection will push back the timeframe for deliveries, but it does highlight the uncertainty airlines face with Boeing unable to deliver its flagship aircraft.

On halt

For Vistara, the pause has become a huge headache. While it successfully launched flights to London, Paris, Frankfurt, and Tokyo using the 787, it has been unable to maintain the frequencies that it wants.

With Tokyo currently suspended due to Japan's entry caps, Vistara has settled for seven rotations to London and three each to Paris and Frankfurt. All of these are from Delhi and the day in between is required for repositioning and checks.

Vistara Boeing 787
Vistara will induct a third Boeing 787 aircraft on lease to boost its long-haul operations. Photo: Getty Images

However, the biggest risk is that Vistara misses out on the surging summer demand that is coming. Indians are heading abroad for the first time in two years, sending fares rocketing again. With a smaller schedule, the new entrant is likely to struggle to gain traction, at least to Paris and Frankfurt, and those in other Indian hubs like Mumbai will opt for direct connections too.

For now, Vistara will be closely watching the developments with the 787 program.

What do you think about Vistara's potential plans to lease 787s? Let us know in the comments!