IndiGo, with CEO Pieter Elbers, welcomed the customers and celebrated the Boeing 787 launch flight to Bangkok with lamp lighting and cake cutting at Terminal 3, Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi
Indian carrier IndiGo is set to make its long-awaited European long-haul debut with the launch of nonstop flights to Amsterdam and Manchester, England.
The move marks a milestone in the airline’s international expansion strategy, as it shifts from its traditional short- and medium-haul operations to long-haul services. The LCC plans to introduce three weekly flights to both destinations starting in July 2025, pending regulatory approvals.
IndiGo, which leads India’s domestic market and has expanded into regional international routes, has been steadily increasing its presence in Europe through codeshare agreements with the likes of Air France, British Airways and KLM. However, the new routes will be the airline’s first-ever long-haul services.
CEO Pieter Elbers says the plans mark “a new and very exciting chapter” in IndiGo's growth. “India has strong ties both with the UK and the Netherlands for business and tourism, and there is a large Indian diaspora who live in these countries,” he adds. “These new flights will benefit both our existing and potential customers who fly on these routes.”
IndiGo is accelerating its long-haul entry through a damp-lease agreement with Norse Atlantic Airways for Boeing 787-9 aircraft. The first of these widebodies was inducted into service on March 1, operating on the New Delhi-Bangkok route, while three additional 787s are scheduled to join the fleet in the second half of the year.
The damp-lease agreement with Norse initially covers a six-month period, with an option to extend up to 18 months, pending regulatory approvals. IndiGo has indicated it is open to further expanding the partnership and leasing additional widebodies.
Beyond leasing, IndiGo is preparing for sustained long-haul growth with a major fleet expansion. The airline has ordered 70 Airbus A321XLRs, expected to begin arriving this year, and 30 A350-900s, scheduled for delivery from 2027.
According to OAG Schedules Analyser data, Amsterdam Airport Schiphol currently has four nonstop routes to India. KLM operates daily flights to Mumbai and New Delhi, along with six weekly flights to Bengaluru, while Air India offers a daily Amsterdam-New Delhi service. KLM will also launch a Hyderabad route in September.
However, IndiGo will be the only airline offering nonstop flights between Manchester Airport and India during the summer 2025 season. While TUI Airways currently operates a twice-weekly service to Goa, the route is limited to the winter season. Before the pandemic, Manchester also had direct connections to Goa with Thomas Cook Airlines and to Mumbai with Jet Airways, but both carriers have since ceased operations.
Figures provided by Sabre Market Intelligence show that O&D traffic between Manchester and India totaled more than 300,000 two-way passengers during 2024, with Mumbai-Manchester the largest city pair followed by Kochi and New Delhi. IndiGo will be targeting VFR flows given that there are about 540,000 people of Indian origin living in the north of England, according to inward investment agency Midas.
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