AVIATION BUZZ

HAPPY BIRTHDAY INDIGO

As Indigo Air IndiGo (InterGlobe Aviation Ltd) turns 18 today, they open up the skies to the next phase of #aviation consolidation and growth in the Indian Aviation market.

In June of 2005, Bhatia and Gangwal ordered 100 aircraft for delivery the following year. On August 4th 2006, their first flight took off from Delhi to Imphal and back via Guwahati to Delhi. By the end of 2010 Indigo had garnered a 17.3% market share and had replaced Air India as the third largest carrier in India, behind Jet and Kingfisher.

Over the years Indigo has grown to be the largest in India and amongst the top twenty airlines in the world. It is widely recognised as one of the top three Low-Cost carriers in the world, along with Ryan Air and SouthWest Airlines.

The metamorphosis of Indigo from an LCC to a Hybrid carrier began in March 2023, when they began exploring the possibility of hiring premium trainers for their Inflight service, with a view to adding a premium class and also the gradual induction of wide-body aircraft.

We had since the last 17 months said on twitter ---> Indigo to start Wide body long haul flights, and that they would launch a premium class and hot food. We detailed ----> Indigos future plans here, many months ago.

The future roadmap for India's largest carrier was laid out in detail here --> Indigos future

NDTV Profit analysed the Indigo long Haul order and its future plans here --> NDTV Proft TV discussion on Indigo

As it brings in its 18th birthday, Indigo pivots to a hybrid carrier with the upmarket segment to fill a void of almost 30,000 business class seats a month, vacated by Jet Airways and Kingfisher.

We look forward to the unveiling of an unbundled Premium class, Hot Meals, a Frequent Flyer program, and its medium - long haul international flights. They have already moved to lease Airbus aircraft swiftly from the market to replace their grounded GTF engines, and have also requisitioned several 737s from Qatar Airways to fill up the vacancies caused by the Pratt & Whitney groundings.

We also project that Indigo will not wait until 2027 for its Airbus A-350s to be delivered, but will probably extend its range into the long-haul space through leased aircraft to make the most of its leadership and get into the international market dominance before the overseas carriers come rushing in.

Either way, we can be sure that we will see an even more aggressive dominant Indigo in the coming years. Blue Skies Forever.