India's IndiGo eyes long-haul flights with new Airbus order

India's largest airline IndiGo has struck a deal with Airbus for 30 wide-body aircraft with a provision to buy 70 more, as it plans to begin long-haul flights, a segment dominated by Tata Group's Air India. IndiGo, a budget airline, has ordered the A350-900 model that is powered by Rolls-Royce engines. It expects deliveries to begin in 2027, the company said Thursday. CEO Pieter Elbers said the new aircraft "will allow IndiGo to embark on its next phase of becoming one of the leading global aviation players." The new deal with Airbus follows last year's record-breaking order of 500 narrow-body aircraft that would let IndiGo strengthen its domestic network and expand its lead over Tata Group, which is also on an expansion spree. In February last year, Tata Group placed an order for 470 aircraft with Airbus and Boeing that included 70 wide-body jets. IndiGo's domestic operations are bigger than Tata Group's, with a 60.3% market share in the January-March quarter. This was more than double Tata Group's 28.5% market share, according to India's civil aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). But Tata Group dominates international routes. Tata Group brands -- Air India, Air India Express and Vistara -- flew 4.42m passengers in the January-March period, against IndiGo's 3m. Middle Eastern carriers are, however, the biggest international operators in India. They accounted for about 60% of India's international traffic in the October-December quarter, the latest such data available.<br/>