IndiGo Becomes Only Indian Brand Amongst Top 10 Most Active Global Airlines

IndiGo Airline recently announced to embark on "massive" international expansion plans with direct flights to six new destinations in Africa and Central Asia.

Image for representation

IndiGo,, the low-cost carrier, is the biggest air carrier in India, both in terms of passenger share and aircraft fleet. The airline, with over 55% market share, which is now over 60% as Go First is not operating flights after fiasco with Pratt & Whitney, aims to carry 100 million passengers in the year ending March 2024. For reference, the budget carrier flew 86 million passengers in FY23, highest in India, with majority of these passengers travelling on domestic flights. Among other records, IndiGo is also the only Indian airline among the most active airlines globally, in terms of daily flights. Here's a list of top 10 most active airlines in the world:

Most Active Airlines (Daily Flights)

American Airline: 5,483

Delta Air Lines: 4,629

United Airlines: 4,213

Southwest Airlines: 4,080

Ryanair: 3,098

China Eastern Airlines: 2,144

China Southern Airlines: 2,052

IndiGo: 1,853

Turkish Airlines: 1,819

Beijing Airlines: 1,586

Most active airlines (daily flights):

American Airline: 5,483
Delta Air Lines: 4,629
United Airlines: 4,213
Southwest Airlines: 4,080
Ryanair: 3,098
China Eastern Airlines: 2,144
China Southern Airlines: 2,052
IndiGo: 1,853
Turkish Airlines: 1,819

— World of Statistics (@stats_feed) July 18, 2023

The list compiled by a Twitter handle, World of Statistics, reveals that IndiGo is at the 8th spot in the world, in terms of the daily active flights. The airline operates an average of 1,819 flights daily, highest in India. The airline marginally exceeds Turkish Airlines, with 1,819 flights, while the last place is taken by Beijing Airlines with 1,586 flights. Talking about the most active airlines, the top 4 spots are taken by airlines from the United States.

The American Airline took the numero uno spot with 5,483 flights, while the second spot belongs to Delta Air Lines with 4,629 fights. The third and fourth spot belongs to United Airlines with 4,213 and Southwest Airlines with 4,080 flights. Also, these are only the four airlines with over 4,000 active daily flights. 

The fifth spot belongs to ultra-low cost airline from Europe, Ryanair with 3,098 daily flights. The sixth and seventh spots belong to Chinese air carriers, with China Eastern Airlines having 2,144 flights and China Southern Airlines having 2,052 flights. 

IndiGo's Massive 500 Aircraft Order

In one of the largest-ever aircraft purchases by an airline, IndiGo announced placing a firm order to buy 500 narrow-body planes from Airbus as the airline embarks on an ambitious long-term growth path. The multi-billion dollar deal comes less than five months after Air India placed orders for 470 aircraft with Airbus and Boeing. The latest order by IndiGo is the largest-ever aircraft order placed by any airline with Airbus. The aircraft purchase agreement was signed between the airline and Airbus at the Paris Air Show 2023.

Currently, IndiGo operates more than 300 aircraft and it has previous orders totalling 480 aircraft, which are yet to be delivered. This IndiGo order book comprises a mix of A320NEO, A321NEO and A321XLR aircraft. During an online media briefing from France after the announcement of the order for 500 aircraft, IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers said this is a historic moment for Indian aviation and speaks of the future of India and IndiGo.

IndiGo's Expansion Plans

The CEO of the airline, Pieter Elbers, recently said the airline expects to have around 350 planes in its fleet by the end of this fiscal (FY24). IndiGo recently announced that it will start direct flights to six new destinations in Africa and Central Asia, including to Nairobi, Tbilisi and Tashkent, this year. Embarking on "massive" international expansion plans, the carrier has already announced direct flights from Mumbai to Nairobi in Kenya and Jakarta in Indonesia and Delhi to Tbilisi and Baku.