It is quite possible that the Tata Sons and Singapore International Airlines, jointly owned airline, Vistara might be in line to buy the national carrier Air India as the government plans its 100% stake sale. As per a new ET report on the matter, Vistara might be one of the carriers which could try to buy the airline. As per an executive, since the government is selling its entire stake in the airline, the offer is considerable for the airline and there is also the history of Air India with Tata, since the carrier used to initially belong to the Tatas only. Although the speculation should be taken with a pinch of salt as it is too early to make a statement.
Vistara Might Bid For Air India
If Vistara decides to buy the airline, then it is possible that it might find an alliance with another investor or airline to take on the acquisition as the buying of the national carrier is a tedious task. If Vistara goes ahead with buying Air India, then it would gain a significant market share in India and would be able to massively expand its footprint in the country. Until now, Vistara boasts of having a 6.1% market share of the domestic market. The carrier has started international flights only last year.
Air India Sale Looking Attractive to Interested Parties
Whereas, Air India, on the other hand, has been the carrier to cater to the most amount of passengers who fly Internationally to and from India. In FY19, Air India catered to 22.1 million passengers and by the end of November 2019, the airline boasted of having 121 planes in its fleet. The executives and the experts are also of the opinion that Air India is a globally recognised brand and the stake sale offer is an attractive one for airlines considering to expand their territory in India. This time it is likely that a lot of popular domestic airlines and some of the international airlines might also seek to buy Air India. The government is also making efforts to sweeten the deal for the buyers, but the massive debt of the carriers remains as one of the hurdles in this.
