Spicejet Purchasing 60 New Aircraft

INDIAN low-cost carrier (LCC) SpiceJet will buy 60 new aircraft to support its assertive growth into domestic and international markets.

The airline is expected to sign a contract with Bombardier to buy 30 Q400 NextGen turboprop aircraft by the end of November 2010. Delivery will begin in June 2011.

CEO Neil Mills said: "We are looking at an aggressive addition to our fleet to double it by end-2013 from the current 22 aircraft."

He said that the company would deploy the new aircraft for tier-two and tier-three cities in India. The carrier, which launched its first international flights to Sri Lanka and Nepal in October, had also previously placed an order for 30 Boeing next-generation 737-800s, with deliveries commencing from 2014.

India's aviation industry is growing at a speedy pace after its recovery from the global economic crisis. From January to September, domestic airlines carried a total of 37.32 million passengers, a growth of 18.5 per cent compared to 31.49 million in the same period last year.

Friday, 12th November 2010 at 03:29am