# IndiGo marks 20 years as India’s largest airline 2026-08-05T23:12:50+00:00 | Business & Economy | Indian Opinion Desk Twenty years after its maiden flight, a New Delhi-Guwahati service routed through Imphal on 4 August 2006, IndiGo has grown from a regional startup into the dominant force in Indian aviation, a Hindustan Times anniversary column recounts. Along the way it pushed into international flying in 2011, went public in 2015, and picked up a decisive edge when rival Jet Airways folded in 2019, propelling it past half the domestic market. It later recovered from pandemic losses of about ₹12,000 crore and returned to profit. At the 20-year mark the carrier flew 430 aircraft, with upward of 500 more on order, reached 140 destinations, employed about 68,000 people and held over 65% of the domestic market. Its board has now signed off on 60 Airbus A350 jets, with the option to add 40 further, under chief executive Willie Walsh. ## Indian Opinion Analysis The piece is a 20-year retrospective written with admiration: it credits the founding team by name, says nothing can take away the credit for what was built, and calls the most hated airline label a tag IndiGo had done little to deserve. The figures it carries, 430 aircraft, 140 destinations and over 65% of the domestic market, describe a home-market position rather than a long-haul one. The Jet Airways shutdown in April 2019 and the roughly ₹12,000 crore of pandemic losses show how quickly that position has moved before. The 60 A350s the board has approved, with options for 40 more, are what the long-haul plan now rests on. ## Coverage - www.hindustantimes.com Tags: IndiGo Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/indigo20/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/indigo20/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes.