Indigo To Launch Direct Flights To Six New Destinations In Africa, Central Asia

New Delhi: IndiGo, the country’s largest airline, on Friday, announced “massive” international expansion plans.

The airline will start direct flights to six new destinations in Africa and Central Asia, including Nairobi, Tbilisi, and Tashkent, this year. Starting in late July or early August, IndiGo will commence direct flights from Mumbai to Nairobi, Kenya and Jakarta, Indonesia.

In addition, the airline will launch flights from Delhi to Tbilisi, Georgia; Baku, Azerbaijan; Tashkent, Uzbekistan; and Almaty, Kazakhstan, with services beginning in August and September.

This expansion plan will bring IndiGo’s total international destinations to 32, compared to the current 26. The airline aims to add 174 new weekly international flights between June and September 2023, offering increased connectivity and options for travelers.

The international expansion plan comes at a time when few major domestic players are struggling on different fronts. Go First is going through contentious insolvency proceedings, while Spicejet is also facing legal battles.

IndiGo is the country’s largest airline with a domestic market share of more than 57 per cent. It has a fleet of over 300 planes and operates more than 1,800 daily flights. The airline said that it will also resume operations of daily services from Delhi to Hong Kong in August, which was suspended three years back due to Covid-19.

These new flights will unlock remarkable opportunities for both business and leisure travellers seeking seamless connectivity, the company said.

Pieter Elbers, CEO of IndiGo said, “The addition of these exciting new destinations, new direct flight routes, enhanced flight frequencies, and strategic codeshare partnerships, will help us expand our footprint across four continents with Africa and Central Asia being penetrated for the first time.

With this expansion in our network, we will now be directly touching 32 international destinations (up from 26), next to our 78 domestic destinations.”

He also said the airline is executing its strategy ‘Towards New Heights and Across New Frontiers’ and is poised to establish unparalleled connections between people and places.

IndiGo’s international expansion aligns with the growing demand for travel to and from India, along with the government’s focus on developing an aviation hub, the company said.