Vistara will operate its final flight under its own brand on Monday, November 11, as it prepares to fully integrate with Air India. From November 12, Vistara's operations will be unified with Air India, marking a transition into a single, consolidated service under the Air India banner.
The government has approved foreign direct investment by Singapore Airlines in the Air India-Vistara merger, streamlining their integration into a single full-service carrier under the Air India brand.
Vistara, a joint venture between Tata Group and Singapore Airlines has fully integrated with Air India, which is also owned by Tata Group. This merger consolidates the two carriers under one umbrella.
The airlines had announced that from 3 September 2024, customers would gradually lose the ability to make bookings with Vistara for travel dates on or after 12 November 2024.
The merger of Vistara with Air India, announced in November 2022, will result in Singapore Airlines holding a 25.1 percent stake in the unified airline after the deal’s completion.
Vistara CEO Vinod Kannan had said that the merger with Air India aims to provide passengers with more options by expanding the fleet and network while enhancing the overall travel experience.
{{/usCountry}}Vistara CEO Vinod Kannan had said that the merger with Air India aims to provide passengers with more options by expanding the fleet and network while enhancing the overall travel experience.
{{/usCountry}}“Cross-functional teams from Air India and Vistara have been working together for many months to make the transition of aircraft, flying crew, ground-based colleagues and, most importantly, our valued customers, into the new Air India as seamless as possible,” Air India CEO and MD Campbell Wilson had said earlier.
As Vistara merges with Air India today, the number of full-service carriers in India shrinks to one, down from five in the past 17 years. This shift follows the liberalisation of foreign direct investment norms in 2012, which led to the establishment of Vistara and other foreign-invested airlines.
Vistara's merger signals the end of a long era of joint ventures with foreign carriers in India's aviation sector.
In 2012, the UPA government allowed foreign airlines to own up to 49 percent of domestic carriers, leading to partnerships like Jet Airways with Etihad and the creation of Vistara and AirAsia India.
Vistara, the only new full-service carrier in the last decade, began in 2015. Over time, airlines like Kingfisher and Air Sahara faded, while Jet Airways collapsed in 2019.