According to one of the top aircraft lessors in the globe, as the airline sector begins to recover from the pandemic, Air India is planning to acquire about 500 aircraft.

According to Steven Udvar-Hazy, executive chairman of AirLease Corp., “as a result of this recovery, there is now more impetus for significant orders from airlines who have sort of sat back and watched the movie, and now they’re recognizing there’s going to be a positive trend.”

“We have this 500-aircraft order coming out of India, which is going to be about 400 narrow-body aircraft, probably a mix of (Airbus) A320neos, A321neos and (Boeing) 737 MAXs, and 100 wide-bodies which will include (Boeing) 787s, 777X, potentially some 777 freighters and (Airbus) A350s.”

The comments are the first public indication of the scale of the planned order after Reuters reported in December that Air India was close to ordering as many as 500 jets as it carves out a renaissance under the Tata Group conglomerate.

Industry sources say finalising the proposed deal depends on ongoing negotiations with engine makers.

Air India did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Airbus and Boeing had no immediate comment.

United Airlines recently ordered 200 large and small aircraft. China last year placed a block order for Airbus jets.

“We do expect a number of airlines will place large orders and again most of these orders will be for replacement,” Udvar-Hazy said.