India's
largest domestic airline IndiGo has ordered 250 A320neo next-generation planes
from Airbus, the plane maker has said. It is the European aviation giant's
largest ever contract by number.
Deutsche Welle, 17 Aug 2015
Airbus
announced Monday that it had reached a deal with India's low-cost airline
IndiGo to deliver 250 A320neo aircraft.
The Indian
carrier already operates a fleet of A320s, having previously ordered 280
planes. With the latest announcement, the number of A320neo medium-haul
aircraft IndiGo has so far ordered rises to 530.
The order
is valued at around $26.5 billion (24 billion euros) at catalog prices.
The deal
comes at a time when India's air passenger market is seeing rapid expansion,
boosted by a growing economy and fast-expanding middle class.
Fuel
efficiency matters
Smaller
passenger planes are increasingly in demand around Asia as budget carriers
expand their reach to less prominent cities.
Airbus says
the A320neo is also designed to be fuel-efficient, consuming 15 percent less
fuel - a significant selling point for airlines in the cut-throat medium-haul
sector.
With the
latest deal, Airbus' order book for the A320neo has crossed to over 4,100
aircraft, reflecting its popularity with airlines.
sri/hg (AFP, Reuters, dpa)
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