Page 3 - Air India

SIA to invest additional Rs 3,195 cr in Air India after Vistara merger

Singapore Airlines will make an additional investment of Rs 3,194.5 crore in Tata Group-owned Air India post-merger of Vistara in November. The merger, announced on November 29, 2022, and set to be completed on November 11, 2024, will result in Singapore Airlines having a 25.1 per cent stake in the enlarged Air India. Full-service carrier Vistara, which started flying on January 9, 2015, is a joint venture between Tatas and Singapore Airlines, where the latter holds a 49 per cent shareholding. Singapore Airlines (SIA) Group on Friday said its consideration for the merger comprises the 49 per cent interest in Vistara and Rs 20,585 million (Rs 2,058.5 crore) in cash in exchange for a 25.1 per cent equity interest in the enlarged Air India. Post-merger, SIA expects to recognise a non-cash accounting gain of around 1.1 billion Singapore dollars and also start equity accounting for its share of Air India's financial results. According to a release on Friday, the merger includes an ...

With Vistara merging, Air India is now the only full-service Indian carrier

When Vistara folds up into the Air India Group on Monday, the number of full service carriers in the fast-growing Indian aviation space will come down to just one from five in a span of over 17 years. Also, the merger -- that will see Vistara's 49 per cent owner Singapore Airlines holding 25.1 per cent stake in Air India post the merger-- will mark the sunset of another Indian airline jointly owned by an overseas carrier after the liberalisation of foreign direct investment norms. In 2012, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh-led UPA government allowed foreign airlines to buy up to 49 per cent in a domestic carrier, which later resulted in the now defunct Jet Airways securing 24 per cent stake from Gulf carrier Etihad besides the birth of AirAsia India and Vistara. Vistara is also the only full-service carrier to start operations in the last 10 years. Since the merger of full-service carrier (FSC) Indian Airlines with Air India in 2007, at least five FSCs dotted the Indian skies. As year

Air India rejigs senior management level employees ahead of Vistara merger

Air India Group on Friday announced a rejig at the senior management level ahead of the merger of Vistara with Air India. As part of this exercise, Vistara chief executive officer Vinod Kanan, who has also been holding the role of Chief Integration Officer for the merger of the two entities, will continue in the latter role post-merger. Besides, he will be a member of the management committee and report directly to Air India CEO Campbell Wilson, a statement said. Full-service carrier Vistara, which is a 51:49 per cent joint venture between Tata Sons and Singapore Airlines, is all set to merge with Air India on November 12. It also said that Deepak Rajawat, Chief Commercial Officer of Vistara will take up the position of Chief Financial Officer at the low-cost arm Air India Express, reporting to its chief executive officer Aloke Singh and also support Air India Group CFO Sanjay Sharma in strategic initiatives and projects. Consequently, Vikas Agarwal, the current CFO of Air India .

Vistara merger: Air India deploys additional resources to help passengers

Air India has deployed additional resources, including help desk kiosks, at touch points and airports to ensure a smooth experience for Vistara passengers post its merger with the airline next week, an official said on Wednesday. Full-service carriers -- Air India and Vistara, a joint venture between Tatas and Singapore Airlines -- set to be merged on November 11. Post-merger, the routes and schedule operated by Vistara and the Vistara in-flight experience will remain the same. Also, Vistara aircraft will be identified by a special four-digit Air India code beginning with the digit '2'. The official in the know said Air India deployed additional resources across touch points in India, including help desk kiosks, at the curbside before terminal entry at hubs and metro city airports. There will be "customer support staff wearing 'How may I assist you?' Air India x Vistara branded t-shirts for support", the official added. In due course, Vistara airport ticketing offices and check-in

Air India merger: What happens to Vistara credit cards, rewards, benefits

All Club Vistara (CV) points, including those set to expire in September and October 2024, will be transferred to your Flying Returns account by November 12, 2024.

Ammunition cartridges found in seat pocket of Dubai-Delhi Air India flight

The flight landed at New Delhi Airport on October 27 and all the passengers were safely disembarked from the flight

Air India to deploy A350 planes on ultra-long-haul routes for Delhi-NY

Private carrier Air India on Friday commenced Airbus A350 services on ultra-long-haul routes with the deployment of the aircraft on the Delhi-New York route. This comes at a time when the Tata-Group run carrier has temporarily cancelled some 60 flights to various US destinations between November 15 and December 31 on account of the non-availability of some of its widebody planes due to maintenance and supply chain issues. Following the introduction of the A350-900 aircraft on the Delhi-New York flight, Air India said it will start a five times a-week A350 service from Delhi to Newark's Liberty International Airport from January 2 next year. Air India currently has six Airbus A350-900 aircraft in its fleet. Generally, ultra-long-haul flights are those having a duration of 16 hours or more. Air India operates such flights to North America. The loss-making Air India had inducted the first A350-900 in the fleet in December last year. Following this, the airline initially deployed the

Air India cancels 60 India-US flights in Nov-Dec citing aircraft shortage

Non-availability of aircraft due to maintenance issues has forced Tata Group-owned Air India to cancel some 60 flights on the India-US routes between November and December this year, according to an airline source. The flights, which have been cancelled during the peak travel period, include services to San Francisco and Chicago, among others, the source said. Air India, in a statement, said it has cancelled a "small" number of flights between November and December on account of delayed return of some aircraft from heavy maintenance and supply chain constraints, without naming the destinations. It also said that affected customers have been "informed" and offered flights on other Air India group services operating on the same or adjacent days. "Air India has cancelled some 60 flights to and from San Francisco, Washington, Chicago, Newark and New York between November 15 and December 31, as it does not have adequate wide-body aircraft to operate some of the flights to these ...

Air India's Delhi-Indore-Mumbai flight gets hoax bomb threat; FIR lodged

A message claiming a bomb had been placed on Air India's flight from Delhi to Mumbai via Indore was posted on a social media platform which later turned out to be a hoax, police said on Wednesday. The Indore police in Madhya Pradesh have registered a case in this connection against an unidentified person, they said. The "threatening message" that a pipe bomb was placed in Air India's flight AI 636 was posted on an X social media account at 5.08 pm on Tuesday, an Aerodrome police station officer said quoting a complaint by a local official of the airline. The flight, arriving from Delhi, had already left for Mumbai from Indore at 4.38 pm, he said. "The message about a pipe bomb being placed in the Air India flight was proved to be fake in our investigation," Deputy Commissioner of Police Vinod Kumar Meena told PTI. A case was registered against the unidentified person who posted the threatening message on social media under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita section 351 (4) (criminal intimida

Air India suspends 10 crew members amid protest over revised layover policy

Ahead of its scheduled merger with Vistara in November, Air India introduced a new layover policy for cabin crew requiring some to share rooms during layovers, effective December 1

Over 60 flights get bomb threats on Monday; 410 hoax calls in last 15 days

More than 60 flights of Indian carriers received bomb threats on Monday, sources said. In 15 days, over 410 domestic and international flights operated by the Indian carriers have received hoax bomb threats. Most of the threats were issued through social media. The sources in the know said around 21 flights each of Air India and IndiGo, and about 20 flights of Vistara received the threats on Monday. An Air India spokesperson said a number of its flights were subject to security threats received on social media on Monday. "Following the laid down protocols, relevant authorities were immediately alerted, and all security procedures strictly adhered to, as per guidance from the regulatory authorities," the spokesperson said in a statement. Meanwhile, against the backdrop of a spate of hoax bomb threats to airlines, the IT Ministry has asked social media platforms to observe due diligence obligations and promptly remove or disable access to misinformation within the strict timelines .

Air India gets DGCA nod to perform in-house changes to aircraft interiors

Air India has received aviation regulator DGCA's approval to carry out modifications in aircraft interiors in-house as the Tata Group-owned airline works on revamping its fleet and expanding operations. The full-service carrier has a collaboration with Tata Technologies to enhance aircraft interiors in its fleet. In a release on Monday, Air India said the Design Organisation Approval (DOA) from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) will enable the airline to independently make design changes in-house and implement modifications to its aircraft interiors more efficiently. "DOA is a transformative step towards enhancing Air India's in-house capabilities, which has been bolstered by decisions to set up its own engineering, maintenance and training facilities. This will enhance operational efficiency and make the airline more self-reliant," it added. An official said the approval will also allow Air India to offer the services to other Indian airlines in the future. Air Ind

AICCA terms Air India's new room-sharing policy illegal, seeks intervention

The All India Cabin Crew Association has termed Tata Group-owned Air India's room-sharing policy for a section of cabin crew members as "illegal, bad in law, and Void ab initio on multiple fronts." The association has requested intervention from the Labour Ministry, urging it to stall the move. The association is seeking these entitlements hotel accommodation and conditions of accommodation in line with the policy on accommodation for pilots, as per the previous agreements and tribunal awards. The association has also written to Air India Chief Campbell Wilson, urging him "not to violate" the existing status quo, and respect the sanctity of the Industrial Tribunal and the pending Industrial dispute over the issue. Under the new policy effective December 1, members will be required to share rooms during layovers except for cabin executives and those operating ultra-long-haul flights ahead of the merger of Vistara with it, scheduled for November 11. Cabin crew members on ...

Vistara-Air India merger: How these two distinct brands will blend

Experts say the merged entity will draw on USPs of both firms

Ahead of Vistara merger, Air India finalises revised policy for cabin crew

Ahead of the Vistara merger, Air India has finalised a revised policy for cabin crew members wherein layover allowances have been hiked and members will have to share rooms during layovers except for cabin executives, and those operating ultra-long haul flights. The revised policy has been prepared after taking into consideration the feedback of cabin crew members. Earlier, the policy had proposed room sharing for cabin crew members irrespective of whether the flight is normal, long haul or ultra long haul. The allowance for international layovers will be increased from USD 85-135 per layover night from USD 75-100, according to an internal communication of the airline. Under the new policy, cabin crew members will have to share rooms during layovers. However, cabin crew members of ultra-long haul flights will get single rooms during layovers as well as during unscheduled layovers in the event of a flight diversion, as per the internal communication. Generally, ultra-long haul flig

Vistara planes to replace Air India's on metro-to-metro routes after merger

Vistara will be merged into Air India on November 11. However, the duty rosters of cabin crew members of Air India and Vistara will continue to remain different for some time

Safety fears rise for Indian airlines as over 70 flights get bomb threats

With the latest threats, nearly 250 flights operated by Indian carriers have received bomb threats in just over 10 days

Air India, SIA expand codeshare agreement; add 40 int'l, 11 Indian cities

Air India and Singapore Airlines (SIA) have agreed to expand their codeshare agreement, adding 11 Indian cities and another 40 international destinations to their network. This marks the first extensive expansion of codeshare arrangements between the airlines since 2010, offering customers enhanced travel options between Singapore and India, as well as beyond. A codeshare pact allows two airlines to offer their customers services on each other's flights. From October 27 this year, Air India and SIA will codeshare on each other's flights between Singapore and the Indian cities of Bengaluru and Chennai, increasing their total weekly scheduled codeshare services between the countries to 56 from 14. SIA will codeshare on Air India's domestic flights between Delhi and Amritsar, Bengaluru, Coimbatore, Lucknow, and Varanasi, between Mumbai and Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Bengaluru, Coimbatore, Goa, Jaipur, Kolkata, Lucknow, and Thiruvananthapuram, as well as between Kolkata and Guwahati. Air In

More than 140 systems integrated ahead of Air India-Vistara merger

More than 140 systems have been integrated and 2.7 lakh reservations made by Vistara passengers have been moved to the Air India system, ahead of the two airlines' merger next month. Air India's Chief Digital & Technology Officer Satya Ramaswamy on Tuesday said significant efforts are being made to comprehensively address Vistara customers' experience across all digital systems post-merger. At a select media briefing, he also said that 2.7 lakh reservations made by Vistara passengers have been moved to Air India, and more than 140 systems have been integrated. Among others, more than 4.5 million loyalty members of Vistara have already migrated to the Air India system. "On the technology side, the Air India systems are at a different level... that is the system the customers will use. The Vistara experience in other areas like aircraft and services will be the same... we will take the best from both airlines," Ramaswamy said. Last week, Air India said Vistara routes and schedule as

Air India aims to double direct sales earnings in 2-3 years: CDTO

Air India is already investing heavily in digital marketing to boost direct sales and is working on enhancing its website