Welcome to my trip report on Indigo! This airline is operating a massive fleet of over 380 aircraft (July 2024) excluding the wet lease aircraft of 2 Turkish Airlines’s Boeing 777-300ER and damp lease of 6 Qatar Airways Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft. The airline has also placed an order for 500 more A320neo and will be a new A350 operator with 30 units in the near future. That’s amazing, right? What is Damp Lease? Damp Lease is which the lessor (owner) provides the aircraft, maintainence of the aircraft and flight crew. However, cabin crew and insurance will not be provided. The airline that is leasing the aircraft will provide its own cabin crew and will be trained before being allowed to work on these leased aircraft.What is Wet Lease? Wet Lease is which the lessor (owner) provides the aircraft, complete crew (cabin and flight), maintenance and insurance to the airline. This is one of IndiGo’s A321neo in operation. This is VT-IBV, a 1+ years old aircraft at this point of time. This is Turkish Airlines Boeing 777-300ER painted in Indigo’s livery. This aircraft only operates on Delhi-Istanbul route (6E11/12). (Photo: Konstantin von Wedelstaedt)This is one of the 6 Boeing 737 MAX 8 from Qatar Airways temporary joined Indigo’s fleet until the airline has enough A320/A321 in operation. This is due to the Pratt and Whitney engine issues with the A320/A321neo which leaves the airline short of aircraft at the moment. (July 2024) (Photo: Jike Zhong)Introduction Indigo has been a household name for many years. The presence of this airline in the Indian aviation has certainly given the national airline, Air India a headache but for the locals, there is a need for competition in the domestic market. Under the Indigo Partner’s group, the airline was able to emerge from the dark times during the covid period and now is growing exponentially. I am pleased to bring you this trip report on this airline, 2 flights in fact. New Delhi to Mumbai and later on, Hyderbad to Chennai. For this route, New Delhi to Mumbai, I had a few choices which includes Spicejet, Indigo and Akasa Air. I wanted to fly Spicejet from Hyderabad to Chennai on the airline’s leased A320 aircraft but on hindsight, I should have book with this airline on this route and instead fly Indigo from Hyderabad to Channei. It doesn’t matter anyway, I will fly Spicejet most likely on my next Indian trip, if they can survive. From the recent report, it seems that the airline is struggling financially, let’s keep a fingers crossed that the airline is able to overcome their current situation. Anyway, without further ado, let’s begin this trip report! Booking with the airline Although I didn’t have issues booking with the airline, I find the mobile app’s interface to be to be a pain in a neck and also my booking cannot be stored into the app unless I have an indian local number to register an account and only then the booking would be stored and I have to log in to my account to access my booking. Since I had 2 bookings with this airline, I have to manually key in the PNR code if I want to access the bookings. The interface of both the app and mobile is simple but at least it is not glitchy when I was using them.The meals are not revealed until the crew deliver them to you. I opted for the non-vegan meal. Just like any other low cost carriers, you pay for your flight and then pay for whatever convenience you need for your flight. I booked with the flexi fare as I wanted flexibility with the flight changes and also to include a seat (standard seat) and in-flight meal which comes in this airfare. The Flexi Plus is enough for me as my schedule was flexible. Mobile Check-in Once I checked in, I was able to use the mobile pass to show the airport security guard who then allowed me to enter the terminal building. About Indigo Airlines Indigo is an Indian low-cost airline based in New Delhi (DEL) Airport. This airline is founded in 2006, started operation in August 2006 and has expanded with many bases in India and currently operates a fleet of over 360 aircraft, comprises of A320ceo, A320neo, A321neo and ATR-72 aircraft. As recorded by the aviation experts in India, this airline had a 61.6% market share of domestic flights and also operates international flights. With the airline recently ordered 30 Airbus A350-900, the airline plans to introduce premium class cabin and launch longer international routes to compete with Air India. No one should doubt the airline’s ambition! About Delhi Airport Indira Gandhi International Airport (DEL) is the primary airport in New Delhi that serves both domestic and international flights. This airport is located at Palam, Delhi, about 15 km away from New Delhi Railway Station. This airport was opened in 1962 and is a hub for Air India, Alliance Air, Fedex Express, Quikjet Airlines and Vistara. The airpoort has 4 runways: 09/27, 10/28 , 11L/29R and 11R/29L. Indira Gandhi was named after former Prime Minster of India and the airport has 3 terminals, terminal 1, 2 and 3. Terminal 1 is currently not in operation as the canopy over the departure entrance collapsed due to heavy rain occured at the end of June and since then flights operating out of this terminal were assigned to terminal 2 and 3. This is the layout of Delhi Airport (Photo: Livefromalounge.com) For this trip report, my flight with Indigo operated from terminal 2, the photos are shown below. On the day of departureThis was my accommodation for the 3 nights in New Delhi. The street outside my hotelWelcome to New Delhi Terminal 2! In India, one has to show the airport security officer the boarding pass and ID/Passport in order to enter the terminal. This is to prevent overcrowding inside the airport. This terminal certainly looks dated. I did a check on my flight and it was departing on schedule.Looking at the seat map, it was a full flight. I asked the airport staff about my cabin luggage and backpack, I was advised to check in my cabin luggage as only one of them is allowed on board the aircraft.So check in it is and I also obtained my boarding pass. Here it is, my boarding pass. The traffic at the airport was crowded, not a bad thing for the airlines. More passengers means healthy loads for the airlines but whether they are making money is another story. It took about 15 minutes before my turn came. Once done, I made my way to the air side. Security check was strict, but what I like is I am able to bring in liquid bottles less than 1 litres, so that means bottled waters are allowed through security. This is the airside of terminal 2 departure hall.There is a food court selling local food. It looks a hawker centre in Singapore.As I was not hungry, I headed towards the gates.As you can see how crowded it is. A lot of cities shown below are unknown to me. There are even lie-flat benches.Best airport? I don’t know about that. So far, I prefer Bengaluru Airport especially terminal 2. Airport Wifi is available but you need a mobile number in order to obtain a code to access the wifi. This is Akasa Air, I will be covering this airline on my next trip report. There is a VIP Boeing 787-8 parking at a remote parking lot together with Air India’s Boeing 777-300ER. My aircraft was parked at a remote parking lot so a bus gate was assigned to our flight. Here is the waiting hall for a couple of flights to Mumbai. There was also another Indigo flight heading to the same destination as us. The flights assigned on both gates were heading to the same destination, Mumbai. Mine was gate 20. After some time of waiting, we were finally on our way. Thanks to Flightradar24, I got to know what aircraft I would be flying on. Some photos along the way to the aircraftThis is a leased Airbus A320 aircraft for Indigo, a temporary loan to the airline until the affected A320neo with Pratt and Whitney engines are back in the skies.Akasa Air Boeing 737 MAX 8 Another leased A320 aircraft operating for Indigo.This is my ride, VT-ILG. Parking besides my aircraft is the airline’s ATR-72. Finally I get to experience the unique way of boarding the aircraft. This is certainly a good way of boarding the aircraft especially those with problem climbing up on the stairs and those on wheelchair, Indigo operates electric buses to ferry the passengers from the terminal to the aircraft and vice versa. Welcome on board! My ride: VT-ILG Airbus A321-252NX (Leased from SKY Leasing)Engines: 2 X CFM Leap-1AConfiguration: Y232Delivered to airline in March 202110422th Airbus built Age: 3+ Years Old (July 2024)Built in Hamburg (XFW)Flight route: DEL-BOMMiles: 705 My Seat (Photo: Seatmap.com) Date of departure: 12th July 2024Airline: Indigo Flight: 6E2009 Aircraft: Airbus A321neo Registration: VT-ILG Route: DEL-BOMDeparture Terminal: 2 Gate: 20 (Bus Gate)Seat: 11A Load: 100% Flight Time: 1 hr 35 minsActual Flight Time: 2 hrs 13 mins Schedule Departure: 1230Boarding: 1145 Push Back: 1224 Take Off: 1242 Schedule Arrival: 1440Actual Arrival: 1455Departure Runway: 28 Departure Weather: CloudyArrival Runway: 27Arrival Weather: RainingMy Flight Experience Boarding procedure was in a mess. There were 2 separate queues plying for the single queue but at least there wasn’t a big fuss about it. If the airline was operating the A350-900 at this time, they could have used this aircraft to combine both flights into one. The other flight was just 15 minutes behind us. Once on board, the crew were discussing some stuff among themselves as I made my way in. Considering it took a while for the airport bus to transport all the passengers on board the aircraft, we departed ahead of schedule the First Officer thanked us for that. That mean we could depart early and and possibly arrive earlier depending on the traffic at Mumbai. It’s not easy to arrive early at Mumbai due to the heavy traffic and also the airport operates a single runway for both departure and landing. While waiting for everyone to be settled down, one of the crew approach me and asked if I was willing to move to the emergency row, but it was a middle seat. I declined as I prefer the window seat. Anyway we were informed about the turbulence and for this flight, the first officer did the announcements. There were a few good bumps during take off and more of it during the descent especially flying through the clouds. Mumbai was raining most of the time with thunderstorms at certain parts of the city. There were also news about floods in certain parts of the city and I do hope the residents living in those areas are safe. Anyway, during the descent, there was quite a bit of bumps and that also includes a sudden downdraft that made me hold on to the seat in front of me, I dislike this feeling to be honest. What causes the aircraft to undergo up and downdraft? Well as you know warm air rises and cool air sinks. This usually happens when the aircraft is flying through the cloud. If the cool air in the cloud is directed towards the ground, that will force the aircraft to ‘drop’ which means losing attitude but this usually last for a short while and until the direction of the air changes. Same goes for updraft, if the warm air in the clouds rises, that will force the aircraft to suddenly rise due to the force and sometimes if you are unlucky, the thick cloud the aircraft fly through has a good mix of warm and cold air and that causes a combination of updraft and downdraft, not a pleasant feeling but sometimes the pilots do not any other choices, so trust them do make the right decision. For the flight itself, there was no In-Flight Entertainment, no charging ports, basically it was a basic cabin. As my air ticket includes the snack/meal, I was given my pre-ordered snack during the meal service. You can also order from the crew but with limited choices as some of the food are needed to pre-book before the flight, one can do so during the booking process. The sandwich was quite tasty and I opted for a cup of water and the nice crew asked me whether do I want to get another drink since my meal includes one, so I went for a cup of orange juice so 2 beverages for me, that was nice. However the orange juice was too sweet for my liking! Unfortunately, the pilot informed us about a delay in arrival in Mumbai due to the weather and heavy traffic, so we were placed on holding pattern near Mumbai. Once the Captain informed the crew to be seated for landing, we were cleared to descend and prepare for landing. After flying through the clouds, we were greeted by the gloomy looking weather but it was a smooth approach and landing to runway 27 of Mumbai airport. This is Indigo’s Airbus A321neo cabin (232 seats – one-class cabin)About the Economy Class cabin This is the older Economy Class product featuring 29 inches of seat pitch and 18 inches of seat width for the standard seats and it also recline up to 3 inches. These seats including the emergency rows (row 18, 19, 28 and seat 29A and 29F) get better legroom space than the others. This is my window seat. (Below) The cabin windows were kept close to keep the cabin as cool as possible. The overhead view of the seat. The cabin luggage space The view of the first front seats. Not the most comfortable seats, but it was bearable for this flight duration. Do you prefer these type of seats or the leather seat? Personally I prefer leather seats. A few more photos of the seatThe view from my seat The view of the row of seats after the flight. A quick look at the cockpit. More photos of my seat 17 years and counting so far in serving the people of India. Last photo of my seat. Bearable legroom space The recline button What do you think of this cabin? What’s provided for each passenger? In-flight magazine Disposal BagSafety Card My In-Flight Entertainment I downloaded some movies, thanks to Netflix.My In-Flight Snack Chicken cucumber sandwich It was delicious. Window view photos (Take off to Landing) Look at the size between Air India’s Boeing 777-300ER and Indigo’s ATR-72!I took this seat so that I can get the view of the engine and winglets as part of the background. Air India’s Boeing 777-300ER This means we were ready to depart as boarding process was completed. Pushing backThe taxi ride to the runway didn’t take long. These are Indigo’s grounded A320neo aircraft waiting for engine repairs and replacement.Just a few more mins to the runway.Fellow A321neo started rolling down the runway. Almost there now, we had to wait for an arrival before given the clearance to depart. Turning to the runway SF Airlines Boeing 767-300FAt this point, we started our take-off. Goodbye New Delhi, see you in 9 days time! The take off was relatively smooth. It started getting bumpy at this point.Once we were cleared of the clouds, it was smooth ride all the way until descent. Flying in India in July can be a risk because of the more frequent bad weather during this period due to monsoon season. Quite a bit of bumps during our descent. It got quite bumpy at this point and that includes a sudden downdraft but fortunately the Captain informed the crew to be seated immediately before it happened.We flew through more of these unfriendly clouds during our descent. As you can see, it was raining at this point but nothing bad in terms of turbulence. Mumbai had been raining for weeks at this point. This reminds me of the city of Sao Paulo (Brazil). At this point, we were on final approach. The weather looked worse compared to my previous arrival at this airport. Almost there!We touched down smoothly and reverse thrusts were deployed to slow the aircraft down. It was raining at this point, don’t mind the blurry photos. Go First’s A320neo were parked, possibly waiting for new owners to take them. My chance of flying this airline is almost zero. Just like Viva Air and Ultra Air, they have all gone bankrupt. Welcome to Wet Mumbai! Air India’s A350-900 being prepared for departure. Here we are, we were parked at a remote parking lot. My flight summary Time to disembark! Air India’s Airbus A320neo Thanks for the ride, VT-ILG! Welcome to Mumbai Airport Terminal 2! After reaching the terminal, I went to collect my buggage before making my way out of the airport. It took about 15 minutes to do so. This is outside the arrival hall. I made my way to the Level 4 to catch my uber ride to my hotel. I am glad I photographed these photos because the next flight with Akasa Air, I departed from a different terminal. I can imagine how nice this looks during the night time. Thanks for reading! My ratings Airline Mobile App/Website (User-friendliness): 2.5/5 Airport Experience: (DEL Terminal 2): 3/5 In-Flight Service: 3/5 In-Flight Entertainment: 0/5 Seat Comfort: 4/5Cabin Ambiance: 4/5Seat Condition: 5/5Punctuality: 4/5 In-Flight Snack: 5/5Cabin Cleanliness: 5/5Overall Rating: 35.5/50Percentage: 71%Conclusion Indigo offers a good deal to travel from point A to B. With the website offering different tiers (Saver, Flexi Plus, Super 6E) of airfare, what I am happy about booking with this airline is that even the lowest tier offers check-in luggage allowance. Looking at the airfare, I thought it is reasonable and even the Flexi plus is not bad in terms of pricing. The prices especially during sales period is certainly targeted at passengers that just want to get from point A to B without the fanciful amenities.As for my flight, despite having to experience a few bumps along the way, I enjoyed it for the comfortable ride and delicious sandwich. While I had to use my own device for entertainment, charging ports installed on these seats or hopefully on the newer cabin product would be great. In addition, mood lighting could be used to enhance the atmosphere on this aircraft. The cabin crew were nice and overall it was a good flight. I love the A320neo family and although this was configured in a density capacity of 232 seats, it was bearable for this 2 hours flight. This flight was supposed to be only 1 hr 35 minutes but somehow it ended up 2 hours 13 minutes, if only this happened on my previous flight on Air India A350, I would have loved to spend more time on that aircraft instead. Hope you enjoyed this trip report! For my part 2 of Indigo trip report, it is coming up soon. Stay tuned! For my previous trip report (Air India A350-900 J Class Experience), click hereFor my next trip report (Akasa Boeing 737 MAX 8 Experience), click hereHave a good one!Charles
Charles Ryan’s Flying Adventure: Discovering IndiGo Airbus A321neo Part 1: New Delhi To Mumbai
