IndiGo confirms huge Airbus order

IndiGo, India’s largest home airline by market share, confirmed an order of 250 Airbus A320neo single-aisle jets, making it the most important such order for the French firm, by variety of planes.

IndiGo would start taking delivery of the new Airbus planes from 2018 until 2026, the airline’s president, Aditya Ghosh, told Reuters. The order is the largest-ever received by the France-based aircraft manufacturer.

IndiGo has to date ordered 530 planes from Airbus’ A320 household and has acquired the supply of 100 planes for which it positioned an order in 2005, in accordance with the assertion.

John Leahy, Airbus Chief Operating Officer (Customers), said: “It fills us with pride that IndiGo is coming back for more of our benchmark aircraft”. Other large A320 customers include low-cost carriers such as Malaysia’s AirAsia and Indonesia’s Lion Air.

Airbus is one of the largest UK industrial employers with 16,000 workers including 6,000 at its factory in Broughton, North Wales.

‘This order confirms the A320 Family as the airliner of choice in the most dynamic aviation growth markets’.

Boeing has projected that narrow-body aircraft, which are used on flights of up to around five hours, will account for 70 percent of all planes required over the next 20 years.

However, not everyone is convinced about the timing and intent of the deal since the company is eyeing an Initial Public Offer with valuation of $4billion when it lists itself on the stock market later this year. Martin added that the airline should have considered opting for bigger planes to compete internationally with the likes of Air Asia but it’s strategy, he felt, was completely India-centric. It had said in the prospectus that the terms of the 250 aircraft order had expired, raising concerns about the deal.