The Delhi-based low-cost airline, SpiceJet, is to take three Airbus A320ceo aircraft on a damp lease. It has also brought a grounded Boeing 737 MAX 8 back into operation.
A damp lease means that the company from which the Indian carrier will take the A320ceos will provide the crew, insurance and look after the maintenance of the aircraft. Generally, these types of leases are more expensive than a dry lease, in which the airline only pays for the aircraft.
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Start My Test Flight →Sources within SpiceJet said that the three aircraft will initially be inducted for four months, although the lease period could be extended beyond that. Like its current fleet, the aircraft will operate in an all-economy configuration.
“These aircraft will help us meet growing passenger demand, strengthen operational resilience and enhance network flexibility during a busy travel period. We continue to focus on steadily expanding our fleet and improving operational readiness as we move forward with our growth plans,” said Debojo Maharshi, Chief Business Officer of the airline. The carrier reported a Q3 loss in February of Rs. 1.97 billion, but the Board approved a plan that month to induct 10 aircraft this year and grow the fleet to 60.
MAX ungrounding
The airline is largely an operator of 31 Boeing 737s and 24 De Havilland Canada Dash 8-400s. The MAX fleet includes seven aircraft, but only three of them are in service. The airline brought back a third MAX 8 on June 4 while the other aircraft remain parked at Hyderabad and Kolkata. They have been there since spring 2024 or June 2025.
It is now experimenting with inducting the Airbus A320 aircraft for the third time since the first flight over 20 years ago. On Valentine’s Day in 2020, the airline inducted two Airbus A320 aircraft on wet lease from BH Air, a Bulgarian-registered airline based in Sofia. Between March 2024 and January 2025, SpiceJet leased two A320ceos from Sky Angkor Airlines. This time around, the company from which SpiceJet has leased the three Airbus aircraft is not readily available.
Last year, the airline had also finalised a lease agreement to induct a wide-body Airbus A340 aircraft into its fleet, marking a key milestone in the airline’s expansion strategy. The aircraft was used to operate several routes, including connecting India with the Thai capital, Bangkok, with regular flights. At that time, the airline also said it was in “advanced discussions” to lease a second Airbus A340, although what came of those discussions was never made clear.
In 2019, the airline launched SpiceBiz, its business class offering. It was initially introduced on domestic routes before being taken on international routes. However, without much fanfare, the entire concept was later abandoned.
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