India’s IndiGo Confirms Order Of 250 Airbus A320Neo Planes Worth $26.6B In Record Order

IndiGo, India’s largest domestic airline by market share, confirmed an order of 250 Airbus A320neo single-aisle jets, making it the largest such order for the French company, by number of planes. The deal, for which an initial commitment was signed last year, is expected to be worth $26.6 billion at list prices, before customary discounts.

The airline’s parent company InterGlobe Aviation Ltd. signed a memorandum of understanding last October with Airbus Group NV for the planes. Aditya Ghosh, IndiGo’s president, said, according to Mint, a local newspaper, that the latest order highlights the company’s plans for affordable air travel.

“This new order further reaffirms IndiGo’s commitment to the long-term development of affordable air transportation in India and overseas," Ghosh said, in a joint statement with Airbus, adding that the addition of the "fuel efficient A320neo aircraft" will help keep fares down while creating "more job opportunities and growth.”

IndiGo has so far ordered 530 planes from Airbus' A320 family and has received the delivery of 100 planes for which it placed an order in 2005, according to the statement.

IndiGo is estimated to have recorded a profit of at least $150 million for the fiscal year ending March 31 along with a market share that is expected to have exceeded 40 percent for this fiscal year, Bloomberg reported, citing CAPA Centre for Aviation. The report added that InterGlobe is planning to raise about $500 million from an initial public offering that would value IndiGo at $4 billion.

In 2011, IndiGo was reportedly the first Indian airline to commit to buying A320neos, taking its total future fleet size to 280 Airbus aircraft, the statement said. The A320neo “new engine option” reportedly has features like large "Sharklet" wing-tip devices that could help save 15 percent fuel from the first day of operations, and by up to 20 percent by 2020.

India and China are among the fastest-growing markets for Airbus and the Washington-based Boeing Co., Bloomberg reported. Both plane makers expect that in 20 years, Asian markets would overtake the U.S. as the world’s biggest for planes.

Airbus said, in a statement released in March 2014, that India would need 1,290 new passenger aircraft worth about $190 billion until 2032 to meet the country's growing demands. So far, the A320 family has received more than 11,800 orders till date and has delivered over 6,600 aircraft to 400 customers and operators worldwide, the statement said.