Istanbul, Jun 5 (PTI) India is a hugely growing aviation market but also underserved, especially on international routes, Air India chief Campbell Wilson said on Monday.

The Air India CEO and Managing Director was speaking at a session at the IATA World Air Transport Summit.

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While India is a "hugely growing market", it is also an underserved market, as there are less than 50 wide-body aircraft (with domestic carriers), he said.

Earlier this year, Air India placed an order for 470 planes with Boeing and Airbus.

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In the context of the aircraft order, Wilson said there is a significant imbalance that the airline is trying to address.

He was referring to the shortage of wide-body planes in India.

Wilson also said that a few years ago, 13 Boeing 787 planes were grounded as Air India did not have funds and there was also a requirement for "30,000 spare parts".

He was responding to a query related to supply-chain issues.

The Tata Group took over the loss-making Air India from the government in January last year.

Responding to a query, Wilson said there is not a "level-playing field" with respect to various aspects in the international aviation space.

While replying to a question in relation to supply-chain issues, he said it is "very frustrating" when you sit on assets, people and opportunities, when there is a delay in new aircraft deliveries.

His comments were in general and not specific to an order.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)