Christian Scherer, the chief commercial officer at Airbus, reacted to the Air India tragedy ahead of the Paris Air Show.

Airbus SE predicted the global commercial aircraft fleet will double in size to almost 50,000 planes over the next 20 years, spurred by rapid growth in markets like India, where a rising middle class increasingly takes to air travel.

The top supply chain executive at planemaker Airbus , procurement chief Juergen Westermeier, has been appointed to run the group's operations in India and South Asia from Sept 1, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters.

India has emerged as a significant player in the global aircraft market. Since 2023, Air India has ordered 570 aircraft from both Airbus and Boeing. Meanwhile, IndiGo has ordered over 900 Airbus planes, which now includes an additional acquisition of 60 A350 widebody jets.

Air India, in its current form, has maintained a more balanced fleet, having taken delivery of 122 Boeing aircraft and 114 Airbus planes between 2006 and 2025

The deadly crash of an Air India flight carrying more than 240 people on Thursday arrives after years of efforts to turn around the country’s flag carrier — which had been plagued by tragedy and financial losses under prior state ownership.

Investigators hope the device will provide clues about the cause of the accident that killed 241 passengers and crew, and a number of others on the ground.

Search and recovery teams continue to search the site of one of India’s worst aviation disasters for a third day. An Air India flight fell from the sky Thursday, killing at least 270 people on