IndiGo, Air India, Akasa to add 240 aircraft in two years

Senior executives of the two companies said that airlines in the country are expected to receive an average of 10 aircraft every month in the next few years, and 80 percent of them will be delivered by Airbus and Boeing. The new aircraft will help Indian airlines expand their fleets after months of delays and slowdown in route expansion plans both domestically and internationally.

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“India is our fastest growing market, even faster than China. In Europe, it is now an aftermarket. So India is where the growth is. And we plan to deliver an average of two aircraft per week for the next 10 years,” Jürgen Westermeier, MD, India and South Asia, Airbus, said at Wings India 2026, Asia’s largest civil aviation event, in Hyderabad on Thursday.

Airbus has a delivery backlog of 1,250 aircraft in India over a 10-year period, led by IndiGo and Air India. IndiGo’s order is around 900, while Air India Group’s is around 350.

Airbus delivered 55 aircraft to India in 2025, all of which went to IndiGo. About 7% of global deliveries were to IndiGo.

“We expect peak deliveries to be 150 units per year,” possibly around 2032, Westermeir said.

On the other hand, Boeing said it is targeting 25 India deliveries in 2026 after expanding its US facilities.

“On an average, you can expect around two aircraft to arrive per month over the next few years. In some months the number will be more, in some months it will be less and in some months a wide-body aircraft will also be there,” said Salil Gupte, president, Boeing India and South Asia. Mint.

“It will be mostly narrow-bodies. Every few months there will be wide-bodies as well,” he said. He explained that this is not a fixed monthly target.

Air India Group and Akasa Air, which includes full-service carrier Air India and no-frills airline Air India Express, are Boeing’s biggest buyers in India.

Air India Group has placed an order for 190 Boeing jets (both narrow-body and wide-body aircraft). The group took delivery of a Dreamliner (wide-body) earlier this year, while Air India Express also took delivery of a narrow-body aircraft. The group expects deliveries of 20-24 aircraft between Airbus and Boeing this year. These are customized to the respective companies.

Air India managing director Campbell Wilson said on Wings India that his company has placed a new order from Boeing for 30 (narrow body) aircraft. The order confirms options granted in 2023. Another 15 of the existing narrow-body jet orders from Airbus will be upgraded to long-range narrow-body XLRs. The upgrade to Airbus XLRs will help Air India reach overseas markets. It comes weeks after rival IndiGo took delivery of a similar aircraft deployed on Mumbai-Athens and Delhi-Athens routes.

“This additional order for 30 Boeing 737 aircraft is part of our broader fleet strategy to position Air India firmly for the future. Building on our 2023 orders and subsequent additions, this order supports steady deliveries and fleet upgrades planned over the next few years,” Wilson said. he said.

Akasa, India’s youngest airline and third largest player, initially ordered 226 aircraft, all from Boeing. The American aircraft manufacturer has a pending order for 194 jets. Two Boeing jets entered service this month. Two deliveries are expected in February.

Currently, IndiGo has a fleet of 440, Air India has 297, Akasa has 32 and SpiceJet has a fleet of around 35.

“If aircraft deliveries come as promised, they will be among the largest in India in recent times. While Airbus production remains on track and deliveries are generally on time, Boeing has recently increased its capacities after receiving approval from the US regulator,” said Mark D. Martin, aviation expert and CEO of Gurugram-based Marin Consulting.