New Delhi: IndiGo, Delta Air Lines, Air France-KLM and Virgin Atlantic Sunday announced a partnership to enhance air connectivity from India to Europe as well as North America.
“Linking dozens of cities in the US, Canada, Europe and India, the airlines aim to meet rising demand for international travel while setting new standards for connectivity and cooperation in global aviation,” a release said.
IndiGo, India’s largest airline, is expanding its International network and is set to start flights to 10 overseas cities in the current fiscal ending March 2026.
The partnership was jointly announced at a briefing in the national capital by IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers, Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian, Air France-KLM CEO Benjamin Smith and Virgin Atlantic CEO Shai Weiss.
India is one of the world’s fastest growing civil aviation markets.
Meanwhile, under the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) announced on Sunday, the efforts will be to create a framework for deeper collaboration between the carriers on a bilateral and multilateral basis.
Besides, the airlines will look at commercial collaboration including network, loyalty, cargo and sales.
They will also explore areas of non-commercial cooperation including aircraft maintenance, sustainability, training and ground handling, the release said.
IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers said it has embarked on an ambitious journey to become a global airline by 2030.
The partnership not only expands our relationship with Air France-?KLM and Virgin Atlantic but also marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter with Delta Air Lines.
Air France-KLM CEO Benjamin Smith said the airline is very glad to extend our existing partnership with IndiGo and to do so alongside partners Delta and Virgin Atlantic.
“India is a strategic market for Air France-KLM, where we have a strong and historic presence soon to increase. We look forward to welcoming IndiGo customers on our flights and to play an active role in the country’s connectivity,” he added.
“In our 25th year of flying to India, we’re delighted to build on our Joint Venture with Delta and Air France-KLM, and our successful codeshare with IndiGo, by going further with this partnership,” Virgin Atlantic CEO Shai Weiss said.
IndiGo has been in partnerships with Air France-KLM and Virgin Atlantic since 2022.
At the briefing, Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian said the carrier will restart flights to India in the coming years.
It plans to resume services to India with direct flights between Atlanta and Delhi, subject to government approvals.
PTI
