IndiGo Airlines (6E, Delhi International) has signed a firm agreement with Norse Atlantic Airways (N0, Oslo Gardermoen) to damp-lease one B787-9 for at least six months, in line with the Indian carrier's plans to expand its international network in 2025.

The aircraft, LN-FNC (msn 38790) is due to arrive in India "in the next few weeks" and expected to begin revenue flights for IndiGo Airlines in March 2025, the carriers said. The six-month agreement may be extended up to 18 months, subject to regulatory approvals. The airline said it would "continue exploring opportunities to contract additional aircraft" but did not confirm if any more deals had already been signed.

LN-FNC is 6.8 years old and was first delivered to Norwegian (Oslo Gardermoen) in May 2018, remaining with that carrier until March 2022. It joined the Norse Atlantic Airways fleet in February 2022.

The unit, which is owned by AerCap, is equipped with Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines and configured with 56 premium economy and 282 economy seats.

Previous reports suggested IndiGo Airlines may lease up to six B787-9s from Norse Atlantic Airways in 2025, while it continues discussions with Airbus to speed up the deliveries of its first firm-ordered A350-900s. Local media reported at the time that the first two B787-9s were to begin flying for the carrier in February 2025, followed by the other four in September 2025.

The airframes would allow the Indian carrier to launch its first widebody long-haul routes and could be deployed to Europe, in line with its strategy to become a global airline by 2030. London and Paris have been flagged as potential initial destinations.

IndiGo Airlines does not currently operate any in-house widebodies. The ch-aviation fleets module shows it wet-leases two B777-300ERs from Turkish Airlines (TK, Istanbul Airport) which operate exclusively between Istanbul Airport and Mumbai International and Delhi International. The first of thirty A350-900s that it ordered in 2024 are only due for delivery in 2027.

Norse Atlantic Airways operates a fleet of eight B787-9s, four of which are currently inactive. Subsidiary Norse Atlantic (United Kingdom) operates another four units of the type. The airline announced in December 2024 that its had signed a letter of intent with an unnamed "reputable international airline" to wet-lease out six of its B787-9s as it seeks to reduce business risk by securing longer-term ACMI contracts.