Tag Archives: Indigo

Launching its flight on the Delhi-Istanbul sector, IndiGo has announced to use its expanding fleet of A320neo and A321neo aircraft to connect more Indian cities to China, Vietnam, England, Myanmar and Saudi Arabia. William Boulter, Chief Commercial Officer, IndiGo said, “We are looking very seriously into other points in South East Asia, notably the obvious ones of Vietnam and Myanmar. We also want to operate shortly to Saudi Arabia on the west side. We are seriously interested in getting in China as soon as we can. We are still selecting precise destinations.” The airline plans to add 125 A321neo aircraft in its fleet over number of years. In 2019, it will receive 20-25 of these aircraft from Airbus, he said. While Delhi-Istanbul flight is being operated in A321neo aircraft having 222 seats, Boulter clarified that the flights to China would be based on A320neos. The Delhi-Istanbul flight plans to connect 20 forward destinations using the codeshare pact that was signed between India’s largest airline and Turkish Airlines on December 21 last year. Codeshare pact allows passengers to travel on a single ticket on flights operated by the partner carrier. Source: PTI

IndiGo is set to begin direct daily operations to Istanbul from Delhi and later from Ahmedabad along with other destinations. This was revealed by Emin Çakmak, Chairman, Turkish Indian Tourism Council, at a Turkish delegation meet held in Delhi on February 25. He says, “We are expecting a growth of 25-30 per cent from the Indian market by the end of this year. We have a great co-operation between the tourism and trade industry of the two countries. The potential is huge and now that can be released as more seats will be made available soon.”

Out of the 1123 aircraft that are currently on order for India, a bulk of them are slated for delivery to IndiGo, according to a recent ‘Project Rupee Raftaar’ report by the Ministry of Civil Aviation. The numbers are evidence of the optimism and positive outlook for the sector, providing some insights as to the near-term evolution of the market. There are range of new and alternative investment and alliance or partnership structures emerging globally which add a new dimension to the industry, as airlines try to and new and innovative ways to expand their networks and their product offering. In some global markets, the changing industry structure is one of consolidation rather than expansion.

IndiGo and Turkish Airlines have signed codeshare and mutual cooperation agreement enabling both carriers to provide more flexibility of choice to their respective customers to fly on sectors between India and Istanbul, and beyond. As part of its international expansion strategy, this is the first codeshare agreement for IndiGo. Through this cooperation, Turkish Airlines will be offering new destinations in India as Marketing Carrier on IndiGo operated flights, while IndiGo customers will be able to reach many European destinations through Turkish Airlines’ extensive network. This reciprocal arrangement will allow TK and 6E to provide seamless connections to their customers, besides enabling them to use through check-in and many other facilities. IndiGo will place its code “6E” on 20 points beyond Istanbul operated by Turkish Airlines. Similarly, Turkish Airlines will use its code “TK” on IndiGo-operated flights within India. Rahul Bhatia, Director and Interim Chief Executive Officer, IndiGo, said, “We are excited to be launching our first codeshare with Turkish Airlines. Apart from supporting our upcoming direct services to Istanbul, this strategic partnership will expand the choices available to our customers for journeys beyond Istanbul, using Turkish Airlines’ extensive network. It will become possible for our customers to book itineraries into many cities in Europe on IndiGo, using Turkish Airlines and experiencing their renowned inflight service.” Bilal Ekşi, CEO and Deputy Chairman of the Board, Turkish Airlines, said, “We are happy to host new operators in our main hub Istanbul, and IndiGo will be the first Indian carrier starting flights to Turkey. We believe that it would be a great opportunity to improve our cooperation with our new codeshare partner IndiGo, which will provide new services and destinations for our passengers …

IndiGo is all set to operate daily direct flights connecting Kannur to Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Hubli and Chennai with effect from January 2019. The introduction of these flights will further strengthen the airline’s operations, and will provide connectivity between Kannur and other key cities with all-inclusive fares starting from Rs 1799. William Boulter, Chief Commercial Officer, IndiGo, said, “We are pleased to have the opportunity to fly out of the new airport in Kannur starting January 2019. Kannur will be the 67th destination on our growing network and starting operations will further strengthen the air connectivity from Northern Kerala. IndiGo will operate daily non-stop return flights from Kannur to Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai and Hubli. These new services will benefit our customers with more flying options and will also boost tourism stemming from nearby regional destinations, including Kasaragod and Wayanad in Kerala, and Coorg in Karnataka.”

IndiGo has launched two weekly direct services from Vijayawada to Singapore jointly with the Andhra Pradesh government. Ajay Jain, IAS Principal Secretary – Energy, Infrastructure & Investment Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh, said, “We feel excited to engage with IndiGo to connect state capital Vijayawada to Singapore. This will fulfil the dreams of Telugu Diaspora in Singapore and is a great convenience for our investors and business community”. Virender Singh, CEO- APADCL, said, “This is just a beginning to add more such flights to many more destinations”. William Boulter, Chief Commercial Officer, IndiGo, said, “We feel absolutely privileged to be the first domestic airline to launch international services from Vijayawada in association with the Government of Andhra Pradesh. These twice weekly non-stop flight services between Vijayawada and Singapore will further augment our regional connectivity that we provide across domestically and internationally. At IndiGo, we will continue to provide an on-time, courteous and hassle-free service and affordable fares to our customers, as always.”

IndiGo has introduced direct daily flights between Bhopal-Hyderabad and Jabalpur-Hyderabad. In Madhya Pradesh, Bhopal and Jabalpur will be the second and third cities the airline will be flying to, after Indore. Additionally, the airline will also operate its fourth daily return flight between Hyderabad-Tirupati. All new services will commence effective January 2019. William Boulter, Chief Commercial Officer, IndiGo said, “We are pleased to announce Bhopal and Jabalpur as our 65th and 66th destination effective January 2019. We will operate daily flights from Bhopal and Jabalpur to connect these cities with Hyderabad. We will also be introducing a fourth daily return flight between Hyderabad and Tirupati.” Boulter further added, “IndiGo will continue to expand its network to meet the requirements of both business and leisure travellers wherever they demand it. It is our constant endeavour to provide more flexibility of choice to our customers as IndiGo continues to offer them on-time, courteous and hassle-free service, and an affordable flying experience always.” The introduction of these flights will bring Bhopal and Jabalpur closer to other cities of India with all-inclusive fares starting from Rs 1999.

Passengers travelling via Indigo and SpiceJet will now have to pay for web check-in. According to a statement released by IndiGo, the pricing is for advanced selection of seats and that airport check-in will remain free. It added, “Advance seat for a small fee helps consumer reserve the seat of their choice on the flight.” The minimum charge for Indigo web check-in is Rs 100, for the middle seat in the last row, and the maximum is Rs 800, for a seat in the first row. SpiceJet’s lowest seat fee is Rs 99. Indigo further said that those passengers who do not have any particular preference for seats can check-in online for any free seats available. The airline had revised its policy on November 14. After the decision by both the airlines was criticised by many Twitteratis, the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) also took to the social networking site saying, “MoCA has noted that airlines are now charging for web check-in for all seats. We are reviewing these fees to see whether they fall within the unbundled pricing framework.”

India’s airlines are expected to induct an unprecedented 124-130 aircraft in FY2018/2019, with IndiGo accounting for close to half of this number, according to CAPA estimates on South Asia Aviation Outlook 2018. All Indian LCCs, except AirAsia India, are profitable, and are expected to report a combined profit of USD450 million to USD500 million. In contrast, FSCs are projected to lose USD825 million to USD850 million, although most of this is accounted for by Air India. Vistara is also loss making, while Jet Airways will either report a modest profit or be closer to break even. In 2018, Jet Airways is expected to place an additional order for 75 narrowbodies and to make a decision on its wide body plans, including the 10 787s on order that it has repeatedly deferred. Vistara will likely order 50 narrowbodies, together with a modest initial order for less than 10 widebodies, which may increase later. IndiGo and SpiceJet could place orders to support international expansion, including widebodies, and we do not rule out the possibility of a turboprop order by GoAir. Air India’s fleet plans are currently on hold pending its proposed privatisation.

IndiGo has operated its inaugural flight to Allahabad from Bengaluru on November 15. The flight was welcomed at Bamrauli Airport by Nand Gopal Gupta Nandi, Minister of Stamp and Court Fee, Revenue, Civil Aviation with the Uttar Pradesh government, and team IndiGo at a ceremony. Allahabad-Bengaluru is the sixth RCS (Regional Connectivity Scheme-UDAN) route and the 60th destination on IndiGo’s network. William Boulter, Chief Commercial Officer, IndiGo said, “Allahabad is a key market for us and the fourth strategic launch in Uttar Pradesh after Lucknow, Varanasi and Gorakhpur on IndiGo’s network. We are strengthening our network from the state and hope to create more affordable, point-to-point connectivity for our passengers. IndiGo will continue to offer an on-time, courteous and hassle-free service and affordable flying experience always.” Both corporate and leisure customers who wish to plan their travel can book tickets via our official website. The introduction of these flights will bring Allahabad closer to the other cities of India with all-inclusive fares starting from Rs 2500.