IndiGo widens global footprint with 6 new destinations, to add 174 flights

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IndiGo will add 174 weekly flights in the summer schedule with the launch of six new overseas destinations and the resumption of service to Hong Kong.

New destinations announced by IndiGo on Friday include Almaty (Kazakhstan), Baku (Azerbaijan), Jakarta (Indonesia), Nairobi (Kenya), Tashkent (Uzbekistan) and Tbilisi (Georgia). There are no nonstop flights from India to Georgia and Indonesia at the moment while other destinations are served by direct or via options.

IndiGo’s network expansion comes amid a boom in international travel. It also comes in the background of Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia’s call for Indian airlines to expand abroad.

Nearly two-thirds of India’s international passenger traffic is carried by foreign airlines. However, the share of Indian carriers is rising and they carried more than 43 percent of international traffic in January-March 2023 compared to more than 39 percent in the October-December quarter of 2019 (passenger flights affected and suspended Finally due to Covid-19 in Mar. 2020).

“The addition of these exciting new destinations, new direct flight routes, improved flight frequencies and strategic codeshare partnerships will help us expand our footprint across four continents while penetrating Africa and Central Asia for the first time. With this expansion of our network, IndiGo CEO Peter Elbers said, In a statement: “We will now touch 32 direct international destinations (up from 26), alongside our 78 domestic destinations.”

While Jakarta and Nairobi will be connected to Mumbai in late July/early August, Central Asian destinations will be connected to Delhi in August and September.

IndiGo will also resume daily operations from Delhi to Hong Kong in August. This flight has been suspended with the onset of Covid-19 and will now be reinstated. New flights were also added to Bahrain, Dammam and Ras Al Khaimah, with an increase in frequency between Mumbai and Dhaka.

At an industry event last month, Scindia told airlines to focus on international routes due to thin margins and stiff competition on domestic routes. While fuel for foreign flights does not attract state taxes, airlines also benefit from generating revenue in foreign currency.

The minister also urged airlines to introduce wide-body aircraft that will enable them to fly on long routes. This is part of the government’s overall plan to develop an aviation hub in India.

IndiGo is developing flight connections that would allow passengers from smaller airports within the country to travel abroad via Delhi.

Elbers said on a conference call after the result last month.

IndiGo currently operates 1,300 weekly international flights.