indigo A350
As IndiGo geared up to announce its fiscal results, it faced the weight of comparison.
Global airline giants like Emirates, Delta, and United had all posted superlative profits—ranging between $3 billion and $6 billion—during the same period. Emirates, with its record $5.1 billion profit, even announced a 22-week bonus for its employees. Singapore Airlines followed with a near eight-month pay bonus after posting a $2.1 billion profit that beat analyst expectations.
Screenshots of these bonuses, unsurprisingly, had been circulating across WhatsApp and other messaging apps. Some expected IndiGo to repeat its $1 billion record profit of 2023–24 and perhaps announce a similar reward. But the airline slightly underwhelmed, reporting a profit of $873 million—an 11% drop.
Perhaps that’s why, while it didn’t match global peers with headline-grabbing bonuses, it did announce a $0.12 per share dividend for shareholders—for the first time since 2019.
Also, in appreciation of the “work done and collective efforts,” IndiGo told employees in an internal memo reviewed by AirInsight: “We have decided that the crew bonus will be disbursed at its maximum, i.e. 5% of salary for FY24–25.” Notably, this bonus—akin to variable pay—is already factored into employee compensation.
Still, while some employees may have felt mildly let down, they might take comfort in working for a company that paid salaries throughout the pandemic with only marginal cuts, and one that ensured all vendors—including aircraft lessors—were paid on time. That’s a rarity in Indian aviation, where most carriers remain loss-making, have never declared a dividend in the past two decades, and some—like Akasa Air and SpiceJet—are actively raising funds. Even Air India, backed by the Tatas and Singapore Airlines, remains deep in the red—reporting a loss of around $500 million in FY23-24—and is undergoing a multi-billion-dollar transformation.
“This year has been a challenging but rewarding year in so many ways,” IndiGo’s memo added further, citing foreign exchange turbulence that led to a negative second quarter in FY25 and aircraft-on-ground issues that contributed to the dip in profits, despite lower oil prices.
Yet, the airline flew a record 100 million customers, added several new routes—bringing its network to 41 international and 91 domestic destinations (132 in total)—and deepened its presence in Europe. It also placed its first order for Airbus A350s to begin big-ticket long-haul operations in 2027, and accelerated those plans by leasing Boeing 787s. These aircraft will begin connecting Mumbai to Manchester and Amsterdam this summer—offering complimentary hot meals to passengers, something IndiGo has avoided since its inception 19 years ago.
The coming fiscal year will be even more pivotal, as these long-haul routes integrate with IndiGo’s expansive domestic–regional–international network for the first time.
“We have many more milestones to reach, and newer destinations to fly, as we will be giving wings not just to India, but soon to the world. In the coming days, our CEO, Mr. Pieter Elbers, will be welcoming the aviation world for the 81st IATA AGM in New Delhi, India, with IndiGo as the proud host airline—another testimony to how the world views the immense growth potential of India and IndiGo,” the memo said.
With around 435 aircraft already in its fleet, IndiGo aims to become a truly global player with more than 600 planes by 2030.
The world will be watching this rise closely—as will employees, still hopeful that a special bonus might be on the horizon in the years ahead.
Also keeping a close watch will be Air India, currently the world’s seventh-largest airline by wide-body aircraft orders, as IndiGo gradually enters its mainstay: the long-haul market.
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