Low-cost carrier GoAir announced on Thursday the purchase of 72 additional Airbus aircraft at a cost of $7.2 billion.

The delivery of the A320 aircraft with new engine option (NEO) will start from June 2015. This is apart from the 10 A320s that the company expects to add to a fleet of similar size over the next 24 months.

Mr Jeh Wadia, Managing Director, said that GoAir will receive about 15 planes a year from 2015 onwards.

The purchase will be financed as a combination of equity and debt. The combined order will touch 92 aircraft at a combined price of Rs 43,200 crore ($9.6 billion), he said.

The A320 NEO offers 15 per cent savings on fuel burn and 11 per cent reduction on operating cost per seat. This will also enable the airline to reduce fare, he said.