After agreeing to buy a 24% stake in Jet Airways for Rs 2,058 crore, Abu Dhabi?s Etihad Airways could become a rescuer for national carrier Air India. A team of Etihad officials conducted thorough inspections of five Boeing 777-200LRs of Air India and sources indicate the airline could soon put in a bid for the planes. The state-owned carrier has been trying to sell the fuel-guzzling 777-200LRs since late last year and expects to mop up Rs 2,500 crore through the sale.

Sources added that Cameroon Airlines has also expressed interest in purchasing the planes and its officials have also conducted inspections of the aircraft in the past few days.

A top Air India official, when contacted, neither confirmed nor denied this development. ?The tender process is not complete yet and the planes will go to the highest bidders,? he said.

Meanwhile, it is learnt that the Etihad team, which was involved in the inspection, was happy with the current condition of the aircraft. The Abu Dhabi-based airline is keen to induct the aircraft to its fleet, said an official with knowledge of the matter.

After failing to find any lessor for its five Boeing 777s, the debt-laden Air India announced an outright sale of these aircraft in early 2013. The state-owned carrier had also sought to ?sale and lease back? the fuel-guzzling five Boeing 777-200 LR planes (2007 and 2009 make). However, after repeated attempts, it could not find any takers and was eventually forced to put them on the block.

?Air India is planning to sell its B777-200LR (long-range) aircraft. Air India had inducted eight such aircraft between 2007 and 2010,? minister of state for civil aviation KC Venugopal said in a written reply in the Lok Sabha earlier this year.

The B777-200LRs were inducted to cater to ultra long-range non-stop operations between India and the US. However, due to a steep increase in fuel prices, some of the ultra-long operations, such as Bangalore to San Francisco, never commenced. Furthermore, with the market dynamics changing significantly due to the global recession, it was found that the yield from non-stop routes of B777-200LR was poor. The latest Dreamliners acquired by Air India are the frontrunners to replace the B777-200LRs on their long-range non-stop operations.

Selling the planes, by which Air India can raise up to R2,500 crore, will help the debt-laden airline to trim its debt, which currently amounts to over Rs 68,000 crore.

Air India, in 2006, had placed orders for 68 aircraft with the US aircraft-maker Boeing, apart from 43 with the European plane-maker Airbus. The Boeing orders consisted of 18 B737-800s, 27 B787s (Dreamliners) and 23 B777s. Of the 23 B777s, 15 were B777-300 ERs and eight were B777-200-LRs.

Air India has already taken delivery of 18 B737-800s and eight B777-200 LRs, apart from 12 B-777-300 ERs. The airline has also received six Dreamliners out of the 27 on order so far. Another seven of these aircraft are to be delivered by Boeing by December, taking the total to 14.

The eight B777-200 LRs, of which Air India plans to sell five, are 235-seaters against the industry practice of 290-300 seats.