Air India to use proceeds from Boeing 777 sale to pay off loan

For the first seven of the Dreamliners it received, Air India has mandated the leaseback arrangement with Investec Bank for four of them and Deutsche Bank for three. This year, the airline, which has 11 Boeing 787s, would get six more.

Sale-leaseback or leaseback is an arrangement in which an owner sells an asset to a leasing firm and, at the same time, leases it back. Therefore, one continues to be able to use the asset on a long-term basis but no longer owns it.

All proceeds thus received would be adequate to repay the aircraft loans, while the the surplus generated could be used to clear debts meet the airline's working capital needs, the sources said. Air India's huge debt and liabilities are estimated at over Rs 20,000 crore.

These measures were being taken in line with the turnaround and financial restructuring plans, they said.