Project 2025-The Indian Airline Edition

With this year coming to a close seeing the highest of highs and the lowest of lows, Indian Aviation is all ready to enter 2025. Not only was this an ushering of a new calendar year, but it was also an ushering of a new era. It is safe to say 2024 was a milestone year for Indian airlines, from massive orders, new products and routes, and significant milestones, Indian airlines are bigger, bolder, and better than ever. With a growing travel market in hand, Indian airlines are rapidly expanding into unclaimed territories with 2024 in particular seeing India's biggest airlines expand to new markets around the world reaping their potential to the fullest. But one may wonder, counting on a further expansion in the fleet and growing demand, what is in store for Indian airlines in 2025 and where we can see them next? Well, let's find out on this latest issue of Analysis by Avgeek Parikh.

The Mighty Blue

2024 saw big and significant changes for India's largest airline, Indigo. With the launch of its loyalty program BlueChip and the introduction of IndigoStreach, its very own spin on business class, Indigo is all set to cement itself as the airline of choice for not only the budget traveler but also the premium traveler. With a massive backlog of over 500 aircraft, Indigo is expanding rapidly albeit to short and medium-haul international markets with destinations like Lagwaki and Penang being launched along with the introduction of key city pairings like Kuala Lumpur and Abu Dhabi to Bengaluru. , 2025 can see some more short and medium routes added to its network. After expanding to Lagwaki, Penang, and Bali, Indigo is betting big on the Southeast Asian market with destinations like Chiang Mai, Medan, and Phnom Penh under its radar with some sources stating flights to Phnom Penh (from Kolkata) may begin as early as February, making it the first and only Indian career to fly to Cambodia. West Asia is also not left alone as in the past, the airline had stated it's intention to expand it's offering into the Middle East with new flights to Al Ain and Medina under consideration. Seychelles in Africa is also a strong contender for the airline after the airline expanded to Nairobi and Mauritius. Central Asia is a region where Indigo enjoyed a great deal of success with flights to destinations like Almaty and Taskent being added. Bishkek in Kyrgyzstan is also under the radar with flights starting from March. If things go as planned Indigo may very well receive its most awaited and prized possession in its stable, the A321XLR. A game changer for the airline, The A321XLR will allow the airline to significantly expand its horizons into new, uncharted territories once unreachable. Although no official destinations have been announced for the XLR, it is safe to suggest the airline is looking at destinations in East Asia and Europe. Destinations like Athens, Rome, Tokyo, and Seoul are likely strong candidates for Indigo's XLRs.

The Sleeping Giant

Air India seems to have had a rather mixed 2024. Although there were big complaints about its hard products and quality of service, 2024 was nevertheless a significant year for the Airline. From its much-awaited A350 entering long haul service to London and New York to the anticipated bittersweet merger with vistara, Air India saw significant changes in the year. It also further added 100 Airbus aircraft to its order book over its existing order of 470 jets. Moreover, Air India also took a massive expansion drive with destinations like Kuala Lumpur, Zurich, Ho Chi Minh City, etc being added, and destinations like Denpasar and Mauritius inherited from the Vistara network. As an Avgeek, The potential Air India has is often undermined and its intended destinations always seem to be in limbo. The most famous case of this is the case of Dallas and Los Angeles which the carrier was intended to add for a long time. Since the airline is going through an aircraft shortage, We can expect both of these to be added later in 2025. Other potential destinations include Manila, Jakarta, Manchester, and Seattle. Recently, news sprung that the airline was intending to add Bengaluru to Frankfurt and Melbourne however, time will tell if this comes to fruition.

The Giant Killer

Despite the delays of its 737MAX jets due to strikes, Air India Express seems to be expanding rapidly and going head-to-head with Indigo on key International flights. After successfully launching flights to Bangkok and launching several key routes like Mangalore-Singapore and Bengaluru-Dammam, the airline intends to expand it's presence into destinations like Colombo, Katmandu, Vietnam (both Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City), and Phuket. However, time shall tell from where these flights shall commence.

The New Kid in the Block

Last but not least, is Akasa, which also has had a blockbuster year with its order of 100 737 Max jets. Akasa is also expanding but at a rather slow pace adding destinations like Abu Dhabi, Dammam, and Jeddah. Similar to Air India Express, Akasa is expected to add popular destinations like Singapore, Bangkok, Kathmandu, and Colombo.

But But But...

As we are all aware, with the massive production delays manufacturers are facing, it is tough to get one's aircraft early on. This issue has led Air India to reduce frequency on key routes and Indigo to lease various aircraft. One can only hope that all goes smoothly for Indian Airlines and they set new milestones once again.