New Delhi: India’s largest airline company, Indigo, on Thursday announced the agreement with Airbus to procure 30 wide body aircraft (A350-900) along with future purchase plans. The agreement was signed with a view to raise a dedicated fleet of wide-bodied flights for long-haul journeys.
An airline official said that they required wide-body aircraft mostly for international trips, which is gaining traction for the last couple of years, particularly after the Covid pandemic subsided considerably. “The demand for direct to destination flight from India and abroad is gaining momentum and hence it required operation of wide-bodied aircraft,” he added.
“For IndiGo, after successfully pioneering the Indian skies with an unprecedented journey, its fleet of 30 Airbus A350-900 aircraft will allow IndiGo to embark on its next phase of becoming one of the leading global aviation players. At IndiGo, we take pride in being India’s preferred airline and for offering connectivity to our customers, in and with India. This reaffirms IndiGo’s belief in, and commitment to, the growth of India, and in our strategic partnership with Airbus,” said Pieter Elbers, Chief Executive Officer, IndiGo.
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The deliveries of the aircraft are expected to start from 2027. The airline currently operates over 350 aircraft, which are mostly narrow-body commercial planes.
The deal for purchase of new aircraft was signed between Pieter Elbers, Benoit de Saint-Exupéry, Airbus‘ executive vice president of commercial aircraft and Ewen McDonald, Rolls Royce’s chief customer officer – Civil Aerospace, at InterGlobe’s corporate headquarters on Thursday.
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“With IndiGo’s current fleet, the almost 1000 A320 Family aircraft yet to be delivered, and today’s order for wide-body aircraft, IndiGo is not only well positioned to expand and densify its unparalleled network but equally importantly, IndiGo will play its part to fulfill the Indian government’s stated mission,” the airline said in a statement. The widebody aircraft will be powered by Rolls Royce‘s Trent XWB engines.
Civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia has been asking the airlines to operate wide-body aircraft for long-haul flights services. In its absence of wide-body aircraft with Indian airlines, the market segment has been mostly dominated by the carriers from the Middle East and Europe.
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“By FY32, the long and ultra-long haul market is projected to require the deployment of around 300 widebodies. The India-USA market alone will require 100 widebody equivalents. To achieve a 30% market share, Indian carriers will need approximately an additional 60 widebodies. This assumes a conservative market growth rate of 7.5% per annum,” the aviation consulting and research firm said as part of a research briefing on wide-body aircraft in India.
