MC Exclusive: IndiGo's international expansion plans to get 'XLR boost' by June 2025

IndiGo plans to expand its international reach and enhance its cargo operations in the coming years as part of a broader strategy to position itself as a leading global airline by 2030.

InterGlobe Aviation-owned IndiGo is likely to take delivery of its first Airbus A321XLR aircraft, the longest-range single-aisle aircraft in the world, by June 2025, which will allow the airline to fly directly to western European and far-eastern countries from India, multiple official aware of the ongoing discussions told Moneycontrol.

"IndiGo's first A321XLR fitted with a CFM LEAP-1A engine will likely be delivered to the airline by mid-2025, with five such aircraft likely to be delivered by the end of 2025," a senior executive involved in the process told Moneycontrol.

He added that the new aircraft will have dual-class configuration and will help IndiGo operate nonstop flights of up to 4,700 nautical miles or 8,700 km, which will help the airline fly directly from Indian airports to London, Amsterdam, Paris, Tokyo and Perth. The planes in the airline's current fleet, mainly A320ceo, A320neo, A321neo and ATR aircraft, can fly a maximum of 7,200 km without refuelling.

The new aircraft will play a major part in IndiGo's international expansion plans in 2025, as the airline is looking to expand its services in the international market and is currently in talks with multiple airports for direct services from the Indira Gandhi International Airport, a senior executive from IndiGo told Moneycontrol.

"IndiGo has also applied for slots under the IATA Summer schedule to operate flights between Delhi and Heathrow Airport in London, London Gatwick Airport, Birmingham Airport, Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol," the executive said.

Emails sent to Airbus India and IndiGo remained unanswered till the time of publishing.

IATA's Summer schedule, which begins on March 30 and lasts till October 26, is used to allocate slots to airlines using the Worldwide Airport Slot Guidelines. For each season, airlines submit their slot requests and planned usage.

Last week, IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers said in its post-earnings conference call that the airline will launch flights to three more international destinations in the next few months to increase its international offerings to 40 by the end of 2024-25. He also said that IndiGo's newly launched loyalty programme will help the airline garner a higher share of international customers.

IndiGo plans to expand its international reach and enhance its cargo operations in the coming years as part of a broader strategy to position itself as a leading global airline by 2030.

IndiGo currently has 69 A321 XLR on order with Airbus, which will likely be delivered by 2030. Last year, IndiGo had also ordered 30 Airbus A350-900 aircraft to expand its long-haul international operations, deliveries of which will start in 2027.

Recent media reports have indicated that IndiGo is aggressively looking to expand its international operations and the airline has also entered into an arrangement with Norwegian carrier Norse Atlantic to lease up to six Boeing 787 aircraft to expedite its entry into the India-Europe market. Norse said in late November that it had a tentative agreement in place to wet-lease six of its 787s in 2025 to a "reputable" international airline.

Elbers had last week also said that IndiGo is looking to speed up the deployment of long-range aircraft.

"Subject to regulatory approvals, we are exploring interim solutions for an earlier introduction of long-range aircraft to our fleet through wet leases," Elbers said, adding that "route and network opportunities are being explored at present."

IndiGo already has two Boeing 777s on wet lease from Turkish Airlines to serve Istanbul routes and is due to begin receiving its first owned wide-body aircraft from its firm commitment for 30 Airbus A350-900s in 2027, but said during an earnings call on January 24 that it wants to take long-range aircraft ahead of those deliveries.

IndiGo has received approvals from the governments of India and Kyrgyzstan and is expected to launch a daily service between Indira Gandhi International Airport and Manas International Airport in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, from February 15.

The India-London market is a marquee one for Indian airlines, and they have aggressively expanded in the segment to tap into one of the larger chunks of the Indian diaspora.

Air India currently has 31 weekly flights to London Heathrow Airport, and also flies to Gatwick Airport from Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Goa and Kochi due to unavailability of take-off and landing slots at Heathrow Airport.

London Heathrow is the largest European airport by seats in the market to India, with a seat share of more than 30.1 percent.