India’s biggest airline IndiGo that is currently opting for aircraft engines from Pratt & Whitney may shift towards the French-American firm CFM, reports NASDAQ. The decision is expected to be finalized by the end of June.
IndiGo has placed orders for 430 Airbus planes of A320 Neo family. Among them, Pratt & Whitney will power the engines of the 150 aircraft. For the remaining 280 planes, IndiGo has chosen to run bidding and CFM, jointly owned by General Electric and Safran, is competing with Pratt & Whitney to win the bid.
The competition is going on ... nothing has been finalized yet. The anticipation is to get it done by the Paris air show, but these things tend to go down to the wire, said one of the sources to NASDAQ.
Paris air show will be held from 17-23 June 2019.
Also Read: IndiGo Gains a Lion’s Share of the Domestic Market at 49.9% in April
Pratt & Whitney may not easily let go of IndiGo. Pratt & Whitney’s engines are known for their fuel efficiency than its rivals, but there are technical issues repeatedly occurring in the aircraft forcing the airline to ground the planes several times. Pratt & Whitney successfully solved some of the problems, but many remain unresolved. The technical glitches of the airline cause reputation issue for IndiGo, report stated.
With IndiGo now having ambitions to fly to Europe and expand overseas that becomes a bigger consideration, and it’s not all about the edge on fuel, said a source.
IndiGo announces new international flights from July
Meanwhile, IndiGo has announced that it will launch new international flights from July. One service will be from Mumbai to Saudi city of Dammam, and another will be from Chennai to Malaysia’s capital Kuala Lumpur. The flights on Mumbai-Dammam route and Chennai-Kuala Lumpur would begin from July 5 and 15, respectively.
We are delighted to expand our international reach through the launch of these new flights. We are committed to strengthen and grow our international network, which is line with our overall growth strategy, IndiGo said.
IndiGo will also increase its frequency from 5 July on the Mumbai-Doha route. The fare for this route starts from INR 6999.
Also Read: IndiGo’s Profit Soars Five Times, Records INR 590 Crore in Q4
