Sunday 24 / November / 2024
New Delhi: India's largest airline IndiGo's board has approved an order for 500 Airbus A320 family aircraft, making it the biggest order in its history, an official said on Monday.
The purchase agreement was signed on June 19 at the Paris Air Show 2023 in the presence of Chairman of the Board of IndiGo V Sumantran, CEO of IndiGo Pieter Elbers, CEO of Airbus Guillaume Faury, and, Airbus' Chief Commercial Officer and Head of International Christian Scherer. An official statement from the airline said that the engine selection for this order will be done in due course and so will be the exact mix of A320 and A321 aircraft.
"This will provide IndiGo a further steady stream of deliveries between 2030 and 2035. This 500 aircraft order is not only IndiGo's largest order but also the largest-ever single aircraft purchase by any airline with Airbus," the statement said.
IndiGo operates over 300 aircraft and has previous orders totaling 480 aircraft which are yet to be delivered between today and the end of this decade.
"With this additional firm order of 500 aircraft for 2030-2035, IndiGo's order book has almost 1,000 aircraft yet to be delivered well into the next decade," the airline said.
This IndiGo order book comprises a mix of A320NEO, A321NEO and A321XLR aircraft.
The evaluation of the offers was shared and discussed with IndiGo's Board, and consequently endorsed.
As per the official statement, the new order will bring the strategic relationship between IndiGo and Airbus to an unprecedented depth and breadth.
"With this new order, since its inception in 2006, IndiGo has ordered a massive total of 1,330 aircraft with Airbus," it said.
The fuel-efficient A320NEO Family aircraft will allow IndiGo to maintain its strong focus on lowering operating costs and delivering fuel efficiency with high standards of reliability, the statement added.
The young and fuel-efficient fleet will help IndiGo realize its sustainability ambitions, building on the already realized CO2 reduction of 21 per cent between FY16 and FY23.
This year, IndiGo expects to welcome 100 million customers on board and as such literally give wings to the nation.
"The Indian economy is expected to further grow from being the world's 5th largest today to being the 3rd largest before the end of this decade. For aviation specifically, Prime Minister Modi has stated his mission to ensure that by 2030 India comes into her own on the world stage of aviation leadership by building cutting-edge infrastructure and developing India into a global aviation hub," the airline said.
Pieter Elbers, CEO of IndiGo, said, "It is difficult to overstate the significance of IndiGo's new historic order for 500 Airbus A320 Family aircraft. An order book now of almost 1.000 aircraft well into the next decade, enables IndiGo to fulfil its mission to continue to boost economic growth, social cohesion and mobility in India. At IndiGo, we take pride in being India's preferred airline for connectivity in and with India; and by doing so, being one of the leading airlines in the world. This order strongly reaffirms IndiGo's belief in the growth of India, in the A320 Family and in our strategic partnership with Airbus."
