By Bikram Vohra
Hurrah, congratulations and all that to IndiGo. With the 500 A320 firm order added to its shopping list, the number hits a massive 1,333 aircraft.
This added order is the largest ever order for a single aircraft in aviation history.
But that said, the risk of an embarrassment of riches may not loom, but it is there. For one, the great Indian mass transit by air has to keep bunny-hopping ahead at the expected frantic pace.
With railways and roadways improving, one can only hope.
By that token, the airports and the infrastructure, including MRO facilities over the next 10 to 15 years of delivery, must be commensurate with the size of the order. For the airline of 300 aircraft, the commitment to four times that strength means thousands of crew in the flight deck, cabin and ground staff and a search for so many more slots outside India.
If any of these elements lags behind, especially areas outside the control of the carrier, it’s the airline that’s left holding the wet diaper.
That bleak interpretation aside, who gets to win the deal for the powerplants? Will Indigo play that one close to the chest for now, seeing as how between LEAP, RISE on offer and the hydrogen clean, efficient low fuel burn option on the cards, it may lie low and say nuffin’.
For now, like I said…cheers.
