Tata to merge Air India, Vistara airlines |
Tata Group`s Air India head, Campbell Wilson on February 27 announced that the full-service carrier post the merger of Air India and Vistara will be known as Air India, which is much more recognized outside the country as the group works on becoming a significant international aviation player. While the resultant full-service carrier will be known as Air India, Wilson emphasized that efforts will be made to retain some of the "Vistara heritage” in that new manifestation. Since taking over the loss-making Air India in January 2022, the Tata Group has been working on transforming the airline group and has announced that Vistara will be merged with itself, while AIX Connect, earlier known as AirAsia India, is getting integrated with Air India Express. Wilson said that the intention is to have one full-service airline and one low-cost airline in the group. The full-service airline will be an amalgam of Air India and Vistara. Wilson said, "Vistara has a very strong recognition in the Indian market but if you look outside the Indian market, clearly Air India is much more recognized and has a 90-year history... the future full-service carrier will be called Air India but we would like to retain and celebrate some of the Vistara heritage in that new manifestation.” Regarding the merger of Vistara with Air India, Wilson said it is in the process of seeking clearance from the Competition Commission of India. Tata Group announced the merger of Vistara with Air India on November 29, 2022, under a deal wherein Singapore Airlines will also acquire a 25.1 percent stake in Air India. Currently, Tata group owns a 51 percent stake in Vistara and the rest is with Singapore Airlines.
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