Low cost company Indigo teams up with Delta, Air France-KLM, Virgin to grow
The Indian carrier orders 30 more Airbus 350-100s for its international expansion. From July it will fly to Amsterdam and Manchester and next year to London
by Mara Monti
3' min read
3' min read
(New Dehli) From India to the United States via Europe. IndiGo, the Indian low-cost airline with ambitions to quickly become a leading company and fly long haul, is expanding its commercial agreements with major international airlines. The latest was signed with Air France-KLM, Virgin Atlantic and Delta Air Lines to expand its connections to dozens of cities in the United States, Canada, and Europe: from 1 July, the Indian company, the country's leading carrier by market share, will fly to Amsterdam and Manchester where there is a large Indian community, and from here it will be able to extend flights to Europe and the United States with its business partners, becoming a de facto long-haul low cost
The new collaboration was announced at the opening of the annual assembly of Iata, the international airline association, underway in New Dehli, in the presence of the carriers' CEOs, from Pieter Elbers, CEO of IndiGo, to Ed Bastian, CEO of Delta Air Lines, Ben Smith, CEO of Air France-KLM, and Shai Weiss, CEO of Virgin Atlantic during a press conference. Asked whether this commercial agreement could be a prelude to the entry of a new member into the equity joint venture that already exists between Air France-KLM, Virgin Airlines and Delta Air Lines, Bastian replied that 'at the moment there are no plans for a share swap, in the future never say no'. Elbner was even more cautious: 'You have to learn to walk before you run', alluding to the challenging business expansion plans the carrier has on paper with 2,300 flights a day, 118 million passengers and a projected turnover of USD 10 billion in 2025. With a 60 per cent market share compared to the flag carrier Air India, the carrier with a strong domestic presence now wants to seize the opportunity to tap into international markets, and international long-haul expansion seems the natural path for the carrier.
For US airline Delta Air Lines, it is a comeback since it has not flown to India since the pandemic. During a press conference, CEO Ed Bastian said that Delta will restart direct services from the US to India in the next two years, such as the direct flight from Atlanta to Dehli, subject to government approval. IndiGo already has business relationships with Air France-KLM and Virgin Atlantic, while the partnership with Delta Air Lines is a new entry.
Under the leadership of Pieter Elbers, who has been at the helm of IndiGo for three years, after having been CEO of KLM for years, the carrier has drawn up an ambitious international expansion plan with 10 new destinations by 2026, rising to 51 from the current 41: in addition to Manchester and Amsterdam from July, next year will see the addition of London, Copenhagen, Athens, Siem Reap and four destinations in Asia.
To support this growth, Indigo announced a further 30 firm orders for Airbus 350-100 widebody aircraft in addition to the 30 already ordered last year, bringing to 60 the number of aircraft that will be used for long-haul operations. The agreement was signed by Elbers together with Benoît de Saint-Exupéry, Executive Vice President Sales of the Commercial Aircraft business at Airbus. The Indian carrier caused a stir two years ago with the announcement of an order for 500 aircraft of the A321 family including the A321XLR model, deliveries of which will begin later this year.
