 "An Indigo aircraft")
The proposed cut in oil production has sent boardrooms of various airlines into a tizzy. With existing costs yielding low results owing to the ongoing fare war, the faster-than-expected surge in fuel prices is likely to hurt the strategy of Indian carriers.
India's leading domestic carrier IndiGo, however, presented a counter narrative saying that its new fuel-efficient A320 new engine option (NEO) fleet will provide the airlines an adavantage against other domestic carriers.
“With a cut in oil production and its prices going up, our advantage will widen as we will be burning less fuel than our competitors , “ said a top IndiGo executive.
India's leading domestic carrier IndiGo, however, presented a counter narrative saying that its new fuel-efficient A320 new engine option (NEO) fleet will provide the airlines an adavantage against other domestic carriers.
“With a cut in oil production and its prices going up, our advantage will widen as we will be burning less fuel than our competitors , “ said a top IndiGo executive.
The NEO aircraft can help the airline cut costs and save up to 15 per cent of its fuel expenditure.
On Wednesday, a group of top oil-producing nations decided to cut next year's production by about 4.5 per cent, or 1.2 million barrels a day. It will be the first cut in eight years.
So, how does A320 NEO burn less fuel?
Here is your answer: As a maintenance engineer working with IndiGo says, “It’s all in the engine.” The NEO fleet features two new engines- LEAP-1A from CFM and Pratt & Whitney’s PurePower PW1100G.
What the twin engines of A320 can achieve is a simple case of aerodynamics. The proportion of air going around the engine, which is termed as the bypass ratio, is the highest for Pratt & Whitney engines at 12:1 as against other engines with an average bypass ratio of 9:1. Moreover, the 2.4-meter-tall wingtip devices used in the aircraft account for 4 per cent savings in fuel.
Simutaneoulsy, Airbus has improved A320’s airframe to ensure high structural reliability, easy maintainability and over 95 per cent airframe.
Even before the arrival of its first order of 180 neo planes, IndiGo had already placed a second order of another 250 aircrafts in October, 2014. As of September end, IndiGo has 10 NEO aircrafts in its fleet and it continues to stick to its target of building its fleet stronger with 154 aricrafts by FY18.
Recent issues with the cooling of Pratt & Whitney’s engines have, however, affected the airline’s performance and the airline is reportedly considering to switch to CFM if the problem persists.
President Aditya Ghosh can get a better sleep with his neo fleet, while his counterparts burn theirs out because of surging oil prices.
