Indian no-frills carrier Air Deccan is to acquire Airbus A320s or Boeing 737-400s as part of a plan to challenge the country's three main domestic airlines on key trunk routes.
Managing director Capt G R Gopinath says talks are being held with several parties to lease four A320s or 737-400s, to operate alongside its ATR 42-300s. He names Airbus, Boeing, Debis AirFinance, GE Capital Aviation Services and Singapore Aircraft Leasing Enterprise as some of the interested companies.
"We plan to put them on the trunk routes, such as Bangalore-Delhi and Bombay-Delhi," he says, adding that Air Deccan wants deliveries within six months.
The launch of services on trunk routes will put Air Deccan in competition with state-owned Indian Airlines and established private carriers Air Sahara and Jet Airways. But Gopinath says "we'll have a different model", as aircraft will be configured in all-economy class layouts. "It will be the same model as for the ATRs - low cost, no frills," he adds.
Air Deccan was established as India's first no-frills airline by air charter operator Deccan Aviation in August. Its fleet comprises four ATR 42s, with three more due for delivery by the end of January. Gopinath says Air Deccan plans to lease five more ATR 42-300s for delivery before the end of April to boost services in the south of the country and to expand services elsewhere.
Source: Flight International
