ISTANBUL, TURKEY — IndiGo nears monumental 500-plane order amidst Concerns of over-ordering.
IndiGo, India's biggest airline, is reportedly nearing a historic agreement with Airbus for the purchase of 500 A320-family narrow-body planes, according to industry insiders. If confirmed, this deal would surpass Air India's preliminary acquisition of 470 jets earlier this year, setting a new record.
At Airbus's current list prices, the deal could be valued around $50 billion, although analysts predict the actual value would be less than half that due to customary bulk purchase discounts. Airbus and Boeing are concurrently in negotiations with IndiGo for a potential sale of 25 A330neo or Boeing 787 wide-body planes. Despite speculation, representatives from both Airbus and Boeing, as well as IndiGo's Chief Executive Pieter Elbers, have declined to comment.
Already one of Airbus's largest customers, IndiGo has previously ordered 830 Airbus A320-family planes, nearly 600 of which are still pending delivery. The news of this potential deal comes as Airbus and Boeing continue to secure billions of dollars in orders that extend well into the 2030s, in response to anticipated aircraft shortages.
Already one of Airbus's largest customers, IndiGo has previously ordered 830 Airbus A320-family planes, nearly 600 of which are still pending delivery. The news of this potential deal comes as Airbus and Boeing continue to secure billions of dollars in orders that extend well into the 2030s, in response to anticipated aircraft shortages.
Indian airlines currently hold the second-largest backlog of orders, accounting for over 6% of the global total. However, concerns have been raised about possible over-ordering of planes, a trend driven by airlines' competition for the same customer base.
Lufthansa Group CEO Carsten Spohr suggested that supply currently exceeds demand on a global scale. Prior to the IATA meeting, there were rumors of an order for 600 jets, but no immediate deals have been confirmed.
