There is speculation that Indian airline IndiGo is poised to place an order for 25 new wide-body aircraft and that the carrier is leaning towards Boeing.
According to Reuters, sources familiar with the development, have indicated that Boeing is currently the front-runner with its Boeing 787 Dreamliner family.
If reports are to be believed the Dreamliner is up against Airbus’ A330neo jet aircraft, though no decision has been made at this stage.
Reuters was informed by industry sources on August 14, 2023, under strict anonymity because negotiations are still ongoing.
In June 2023, at a press conference at the Paris Air Show, IndiGo announced it had secured a deal with Airbus for 500 aircraft.
When Airbus published its orders and deliveries for June 2023, it was revealed that the IndiGo order consisted of 125 A320neo and 375 A321neo aircraft.
The emphasis on the larger A321neo is in tune with the increasing preference of low-cost airlines throughout the world for larger narrow body aircraft, to take advantage of the economies of scale that they offer.
The 500 aircraft-strong order from Airbus meant the airline’s order book grew to around 1,000 aircraft.
At the end of Q1 FY2023/2024, IndiGo had 316 aircraft, including 166 Airbus A320neo, 20 A320ceo, 87 A321neo, two A321P2F, 39 ATR 72-600, and two Boeing 777-300ER aircraft on a damp lease from Turkish Airlines.