Bombardier delivers first Q400 NextGen aircraft to India's SpiceJet

Bombardier Q400 NextGen: more than 60 airports in India can't be served by larger jets

Bombardier Aerospace has delivered the first two of 15 Q400 NextGen turboprop aircraft to SpiceJet, India's number one low-cost carrier. The order was placed in December 2010 and was seen by Bombardier as a breakthrough in the Indian market.

SpiceJet will use its Q400 NextGen aircraft for high-frequency, point-to-point services to regional cities, complementing its larger jet aircraft that connect major Indian cities. SpiceJet currently serves 22 destinations in India, Nepal and Sri Lanka. Many cities and industrial towns in India remain underserved, according to Kalanithi Maran, chairman of SpiceJet. The airline is focused on connecting these areas with more than 60 airports that could not be served by larger jets.

SpiceJet has also signed a 10-year agreement under Bombardier's comprehensive SmartParts program that will provide a wide spectrum of cost-per-flight-hour maintenance for the airline's full fleet of Q400 NextGen aircraft.

Optimized for short-haul operations, the "comfortably greener," 70- to 80-seat Q400 NextGen aircraft is a large, fast, quiet and fuel-efficient turboprop. Bombardier has booked firm orders for a total of 412 Q400 and Q400 NextGen aircraft, and as of April 30, 2011, 357 had been delivered. Q400 and Q400 NextGen aircraft are in service with more than 30 operators worldwide.