A few weeks ago, India’s largest airline, IndiGo, announced plans to lease at least one Boeing 787, launching long haul flights earlier than initially planned. There’s now an interesting update, as the airline has revealed the first route to get Dreamliner service.
In this post:
IndiGo and Norse Atlantic finalize Boeing 787 deal
IndiGo is a powerhouse in Indian aviation, but up until now, the airline has almost exclusively flown narrow body jets, and hasn’t operated long haul flights. That’s going to be changing, though.
In April 2024, IndiGo placed a firm order for 30 Airbus A350-900s. The planes will be delivered as of 2027, and the plan is for IndiGo to go head-to-head against carriers like Air India on a global scale. On top of that, IndiGo has 69 Airbus A321XLRs on order, which will be delivered starting later this year, and will open up all kinds of new markets.
Now IndiGo plans to spread its wings with wide body aircraft earlier than initially planned. IndiGo has signed an agreement with Norse Atlantic to lease one Boeing 787-9, with plans to start operations in March 2025. This will be a wet lease agreement. This means that Norse Atlantic will be providing the pilots and flight attendants for this service, in addition to one flight attendant representative from IndiGo.
The agreement is initially for a period of six months, but it’s extendable to 18 months, and both parties are also open to extending the timeline beyond that, as needed.
What’s interesting is that the companies announced that they had signed a letter of intent for the lease of six 787s back in November 2024, while the firm agreement is only for one aircraft. So we’ll see if more aircraft are part of this agreement as well, or if IndiGo is just starting this on a very scaled down level.
Up until recently, India banned some types of aircraft lease agreements with foreign airlines, but regulations have just been eased. India is getting rid of these restrictions due to the general aircraft shortages there are right now, which are driving up ticket prices.
Norse Atlantic’s Boeing 787-9s are configured with 338 seats, including 56 premium economy seats and 282 economy seats.
Here’s how IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers describes this deal:
“As part of our broader strategy to significantly expand our international network, we are pleased to confirm this damp lease of one Boeing 787-9 aircraft from Norse Atlantic Airways. Our vision is to transform into a global player by 2030 while having strong roots and continuous expansion in India, and we are strategically moving ahead in that direction.”
IndiGo will fly Boeing 787 to Bangkok as of March 2025
We know that IndiGo is eventually hoping to fly its wide body aircraft to Europe, including destinations like London and Paris. However, it takes some time to obtain permission to launch flights, set up new stations, etc. As a result, in the immediate future, IndiGo plans to fly its leased 787 to an existing destination.
Specifically, as of March 1, 2025, IndiGo will fly the leased Norse Atlantic 787 daily between Delhi (DEL) and Bangkok (BKK), on the following frequency:
6E1053 Delhi to Bangkok departing 10:00AM arriving 3:45PM
6E1054 Bangkok to Delhi departing 5:45PM arriving 8:55PM
At just 1,831 miles, this route hardly requires a jet with this kind of range, but I can totally see why this is the first route to get the plane. It’s a market where there’s a lot of demand, and it allows an easy way to ramp up operations.
Norse Atlantic’s 787s have 56 premium economy seats, in a 2-3-2 configuration. It’s interesting to see how IndiGo is selling these — the airline is marketing these as “IndiGo Stretch” seats, which is the same name as the premium product the airline has started to introduce on some domestic flights, in business markets (yes, the seat map is a bit messed up).
It remains to be seen for how long the 787 stays on the Bangkok route, because as mentioned above, the plan is to eventually fly the Dreamliner to Europe.
My take on IndiGo leasing a Norse Atlantic Boeing 787
When I first heard about the concept of IndiGo leasing Norse Atlantic Boeing 787s, I wondered what exactly IndiGo’s rush is with wide body service. The airline went so long without these aircraft, and now the airline is in a sudden rush to fly wide bodies, to the point that it’s willing to engage in an agreement like this. What suddenly changed?
The more I think about it, the more merit I see to this:
- When launching long haul flights, there are lots of logistics to work out, like trying to secure slots at airports, so it helps if IndiGo can start to get those details ironed out before it starts getting its own A350s
- Filling seats to and from India is easy, given the amount of travel demand, especially when you have a connecting network like IndiGo does; I have no doubts that the airline will at least be able to break even on these flights
- Presumably IndiGo wants to see how these routes perform, and that may also help with deciding how many more A350 orders the company wants to firm up; after all, the airline has 70 options remaining
In the case of Norse Atlantic, this is also an interesting (and logical) direction for the airline to take. Norse Atlantic has been evolving its business model, because the current one simply makes no sense. For those not familiar, Norse Atlantic is an ultra low cost carrier that primarily operates transatlantic flights. The airline copied Norwegian’s (failed) business model, but acquired aircraft on better terms. Long haul ultra low cost flying in highly seasonal markets just doesn’t work.
Norse Atlantic is now (smartly) trying to pivot, and that includes increasingly operating flights on behalf of other airlines. One really has to wonder if Norse Atlantic will even bother maintaining scheduled flights in the long run:
- The airline hasn’t made money operating its own flights, while leasing out jets at least pays the bills, since you know what your costs and revenue will be, and it’s very low risk
- With Norse Atlantic increasingly leasing out planes, one wonders if there’s even merit to operating scheduled flights anymore; after all, there are some fixed costs to marketing and selling your own flights, and those costs go up on a per-flight basis without growth or scaling the network
I wouldn’t be surprised to see Norse Atlantic just throw in the towel on its own scheduled flying at some point, and focus on leasing out jets. That was the more logical business model in the first place.
Bottom line
IndiGo plans to lease at least one Norse Atlantic Boeing 787-9. The lease will start as of March 2025, and will be for a period of between six months and 18 months, and possibly even longer than that. IndiGo has historically been a regional airline, but in 2024 the company ordered 30 Airbus A350-900s, with the plan of going global.
Now IndiGo wants to start flying long haul sooner than planned, by leasing at least one jet. This seems like it could be a win-win — it’ll help Norse Atlantic control losses, while it will allow IndiGo to start dabbling with long haul flying sooner. The only surprise here is that IndiGo has only confirmed plans to lease one jet, when the initial letter of intent was for six jets.
IndiGo’s first route for the 787 will be Delhi to Bangkok, which is an existing market where the airline can quickly add capacity. However, the goal is still to start flying to Europe in the near future.
What do you make of IndiGo leasing a Norse Atlantic Boeing 787?
Well, now, look, I'm not saying there's anything *wrong* with your articles, not at all, you put in the effort, and you know, that's something. But, and I'm just being honest here, between you and me, they do tend to... well, they ramble a bit, don't they? Now, I get it, you like to have that conversational tone, and hey, nothing wrong with that, nothing at all. But, you see, clarity, that's the thing, isn't...
Well, now, look, I'm not saying there's anything *wrong* with your articles, not at all, you put in the effort, and you know, that's something. But, and I'm just being honest here, between you and me, they do tend to... well, they ramble a bit, don't they? Now, I get it, you like to have that conversational tone, and hey, nothing wrong with that, nothing at all. But, you see, clarity, that's the thing, isn't it? You follow me? It could be improved, just a little.
And don't get me wrong, your attention to detail, it's admirable, really, and you certainly cover the topic, I'll give you that. But, we haven't got all day, have we? We're all busy people, and sometimes, you know, just getting to the point, that's what's needed. I mean, all that detail, it's fine for, say, a very, very important topic, something really complex, but for every article? Really? Does every article need to be, well, so... verbose? You could get those core points across, I think, much more effectively with, you know, a little more concise language. Just something to think about, that's all.
Stop being an entitled dick, just read the final bottom line notes.
Hello India! Just read the "bottom line" at the end of every article if you are too busy.
I wonder if there is also the component of not wanting to get too far ‘behind the competition’ so to speak with Air India’s revitalization. Possibly trying to maintain its acquired customer base by staying relevant in the longer haul game sooner than later.