India's largest airline, IndiGo, will be taking two more wide-body aircraft on damp lease from Norse Atlantic Airways as it plans to add more direct flights to Europe and capture a larger share of the global aviation market.
These two Boeing 787-9 aircraft are expected to start operations by early 2026, according to the company. The initial term of the lease is six months, extendable up to 18 months, and is subject to regulatory approvals.
A damp lease means that Norse Atlantic will supply the cockpit crew along with the aircraft, while IndiGo will supply the cabin crew.
The latest agreement adds to the existing partnership with Norse Atlantic, taking the total number of wide-body aircraft under this collaboration to six, one of which has already arrived and is operating on the Delhi–Bangkok route since March. The remaining three are due in the second half of 2025.
IndiGo will start using the leased aircraft for European destinations from "mid-summer". They would be used for flights to Manchester and Amsterdam from July, marking the airline's entry into non-stop European routes. Currently, the airline offers connections to various cities in Europe through Turkish Airlines' network and with a stopover in Istanbul.
"As we accelerate towards our vision of becoming a global airline by 2030, this partnership with Norse Atlantic enables us to bolster our wide-body operations while staying rooted in our India-first approach," said Pieter Elbers, chief executive officer of InterGlobe Aviation Ltd., which operates IndiGo.
Deliveries of 69 Airbus A321 XLR aircraft this fiscal and 30 Airbus A350-900 wide-body planes is expected from 2027, further aiding the global push.
The no-frills airline, which started flying abroad nearly 14 years ago, is making direct international flights the cornerstone of its next phase of expansion. IndiGo expects to increase its international capacity share, or the proportion of its total available seat kilometers for international routes, to 40% by 2030 from 28% currently.
The airline reached its current capacity share in seven years, from 14% in fiscal year 2018. Globally, the airline flies to 40 destinations, and has about 19% share of India's international flight market. It already dominates local skies with an almost 64% market share.
IndiGo's push beyond the domestic market comes at a time when Indian carriers are racing to keep pace with surging demand for both domestic and international air travel, despite aircraft supply constraints.
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