At the end of December, Airbus (www.airbus.com) announced that it had finalised agreements with Indigo Partners and its four ‘portfolio’ ultra-low-cost airlines — Frontier Airlines (the USA), JetSMART (Chile), Volaris (Mexico) and Wizz Air (Hungary) — for the purchase of 430 more A320neo Family aircraft. The signed purchase agreement follows a Memorandum of Understanding announced at the recent Dubai Air Show.

The order is made up of 274 A320neos and 156 A321neos worth $49.5 billion at list prices. Airlines in the Indigo Partners ‘family’ had previously placed orders for a total of 427 A320 Family aircraft.

Managing partner Bill Franke said: “These customer-friendly and efficient A320neo Family aircraft form a great platform for continued growth for our family of ultra-low-cost airlines,” adding that engine selections will be made at a later date.

John Leahy, Airbus’s chief operating officer (customers), said: “The A320neo Family offers the lowest operating costs, longest range and most spacious cabin in the single-aisle aircraft market, making the ‘neo’ a great choice for these low-cost airlines in the Americas and Europe.”

The A320neo Family incorporates the latest technologies, including new-generation engines and ‘sharklet’ wing-tip devices, which together will give fuel savings of 20%. With more than 5,800 orders received from 98 customers since its launch in 2010, the A320neo Family has captured a 60% market share.