IndiGo anticipates having 350 aircraft by the following year.
The airline appears to have a strategy in place to stay competitive.
While IndiGo easily holds more than half of the domestic market share in India, significant changes in Indian aviation are under place that could overturn this hegemony in the next years. IndiGo has unveiled plans for fleet expansion over the upcoming year as well as a long-term goal until the end of this decade. IndiGo is not the kind to be complacent.
350 planes by the following year
By the end of the upcoming fiscal year, IndiGo, India’s largest airline and low-cost carrier, plans to have 350 aircraft. The airline provided growth predictions for the upcoming year at a presentation at the analysts/investors meeting on March 23. IndiGo claims that it will complete current fiscal year with about 306 aircraft and would have transported more than 85 million people, according to a report by the Press Trust of India. That’s not all, either.
By the end of the following year, the airline expects to carry 100 million passengers and add another 10 to 15 destinations to its network. The airline anticipates ending the year with 104 destinations, with the goal of increasing that number to 115 in the following 12 months.
Size doubling by 2030
Given that Air India’s expansion ambitions are upsetting established carriers at home, IndiGo intends to maintain competition by doubling its size by 2030. With approximately 500 aircraft already on order, IndiGo will be able to maintain a young and active fleet for many years.
Yet, according to French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire, recent indications also indicate that it may soon place another sizeable purchase, perhaps at the Paris Air Show. With numerous A321XLRs on order, IndiGo, which is already the largest Airbus A320neo client, plans to further extend its international product offerings.
remaining competitive
The existing dominance of IndiGo in the Indian market is unlikely to shift significantly any time soon. According to ch-aviation, more over 35% of all seat kilometers on flights into and out of Indian airports are taken up by its 300+ aircraft.
But where does IndiGo stand in the years to come when other airlines catch up, notably with Air India’s anticipated meteoric rise? IndiGo’s head of international sales, Vinay Malhotra, previously stated that the company embraces competition, adding,
“Competition is a good thing. India now has about 7.3% less passport holders than its 100 million-person population. Indian citizens want to travel abroad as soon as they obtain a passport. There is a ton of opportunity for travelers who want to venture both domestically and internationally.
So, we are in a good position to transport people outside of India at this particular moment. Pieter Elbers, CEO of IndiGo, concurs that the Indian market’s growth potential “justifies multiple airlines.” In fact, with the number of passengers expected to increase significantly in India over the next ten years, let’s hope there will be enough to support operations for all airlines.
