New Delhi: Amid intensifying competition and Air India set for expansion with massive plane orders, IndiGo airline which is “back with a bang” is looking to start flights to Nairobi, Jakarta and some central Asian destinations as the carrier focuses on internationalisation, according to its chief Pieter Elbers. He asserted that there is a lot of growth ahead in the Indian market that “justifies multiple airlines”.
IndiGo, which has more than 300 planes in its fleet, currently operates to 76 domestic and 26 international destinations. Flights to two more domestic destinations — Nashik and Dharamshala — have also been announced.
“There is a lot going on in the Indian aviation landscape… The fact that Indian aviation is getting into the next stage, including the consolidation being done under the Air India group, is a natural evolution of the market.
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“I look to the competition. It is good to have competition but it will be a competition that is going hand-in-hand with the growth of the market,” Elbers told news agency PTI in an interview here.
According to him, the Indian aviation market, which is very vibrant and dynamic, is recovering very strongly. “IndiGo is back with a bang,” Elbers said, adding that the economic growth of India is helping IndiGo move forward and the network of IndiGo is further helping boost economic growth locally.
The airline operates around 1,800 flights daily and in terms of current seat offerings, it is roughly 80 per cent domestic and 20 per cent international.
“We will likely introduce new flights to Nairobi (Kenya) and Jakarta (Indonesia) in this coming summer. We are looking at central Asia at a few destinations but that has not yet been decided… Internationalisation is a big part of our agenda,” Elbers said.
He noted that Nairobi and Jakarta are two important points to connect with tourism, business and Indian diaspora. “So, all that combined, we have a great proposition”.
For the three months ended December 2022, IndiGo reported a sharp rise in profit at Rs 1,422.6 crore and its highest-ever quarterly total income at Rs 15,410.2 crore as travel demand remained strong.
The budget airline carried 2.23 crore passengers in the December quarter and its domestic market share in 2022 stood at 56.1 per cent.
On starting operations with wide-body Boeing 777 aircraft, the IndiGo chief pointed out that it was the first step born out of the need for capacity.
“The market is growing and we were confronted with the supply chain situation, we really needed capacity. The flight has been there for two weeks and we see a very positive response from the market. Code shares placed beyond Istanbul are working very well,” he said.
The airline has placed order with Airbus for A321XLR aircraft, which will have a longer range, and these planes are expected in 2024-25, depending on the aircraft maker’s delivery schedule.
(With PTI inputs)
