Indian LCC Has Placed 62 Firm Orders With Airbus
While Boeing may have
decisively won the airliner sales race in 2005, that does not mean
that rival Airbus didn't have a rather impressive year of their
own, with 749 firm orders on the books. That figure includes 30
additional A320 airliners ordered by Air Deccan on December 22,
taking the number of firm orders by the Indian low cost carrier for
the 180-seat airliner to 62.
"We need more aircraft to respond to the tremendous growth in
air traffic that we are experiencing in India," says Air Deccan CEO
and founding Managing Director Captain G.R. Gopinath, "and the
Airbus A320, with its first-class economics, modern design and
proven reliability, is the natural choice for low-cost carriers
such as us."
Bangalore-based Air Deccan was India’s first low-cost
carrier, spun off of private helicopter-charter operation Deccan
Aviation Private Limited. The carrier began flying Airbus A320s
(file photo of type, below) in 2004, in addition to ATR 42s and
72s.
According to the airline, Air Deccan flies to more destinations
in India than any other airline.
As was reported in Aero-News back in
2004, the airline previously ordered 30 A320s to
complement two already in service with the carrier. The new
aircraft are expected to arrive in Air Deccan hangars beginning in
2007.
"As the first low-cost carrier in India, Air Deccan has
generated a new market by making air travel affordable to more
people," says Airbus President and Chief Executive Officer Gustav
Humbert. "Add strong economic growth, and you see why India is such
a fast-growing market, on which Air Deccan is well placed to
capitalize."
Touting most modern
design of any single-aisle aircraft, the Airbus A320 Family is best
placed to deliver the lowest running costs, according to Airbus,
making it the most economic aircraft in its class.
The Airbus A320 Family delivers many features as standard, such
as weight-saving carbon fiber primary structure, a choice of
engines and auxiliary power units, a fuel-saving aerodynamic design
that includes wingtip fences, weight-saving carbon brakes,
cost-saving centralized maintenance, and category 3B autoland. The
A320 Family also features Airbus's common cockpit design, which
reduces the time and cost of training when converting from one
aircraft to another.
Firm orders for the Airbus A320 Family now stand at around 4,000
aircraft. The type has been ordered by, or is in service with, more
than 200 customers and operators worldwide.