Air India Express And AirAsia India Merger Is Now Complete
Air India Group, now part of the Tata Group, is undergoing a massive transformation. In addition to revitalising the brand with a new fleet of aircraft and a fresh outlook on the end-to-end flying experience, the plans include reshaping operations of the four airlines part of the group. In short, merge Air India with Vistara to make a stronger global airline, and the same fate for the two low-cost carriers – Air India Express and AirAsia India. The merger of the latter two is now complete.
The merged entity will operate under the name Air India Express and have a unified airline code: IX. The whole merger process took less than a year to complete. It included blending operation manuals and transferring Air Operator Certificates. All this while, Air India Group worked closely with India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation. At the same time, the merger received support from the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security, among other key stakeholders.
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With the merger completed, Air India Express will continue to grow. The airline’s fleet has risen to 88 aircraft, and it continues to receive nearly four new aircraft every month. At this rate, the fleet size should touch 100 by the end of the current fiscal year. On the other hand, AirAsia India (AIX) has increased the route count from 74 to 171 while the passenger count has risen by 400 per cent since Tata Group came into the equation in 2022.
