Vistara-Air India Merger: Legal Approval By First Half Of 2024, Operational Merging By Next Year, Says CEO

Vistara's CEO, Vinod Kannan, announced on Monday (8 January) that all necessary legal clearances for the proposed merger of the airline with Air India are anticipated to be finalised by the first half of 2024.

This follows the Tata group's declaration in November 2022 of the planned merger, a deal that also includes Singapore Airlines acquiring a 25.1 per cent stake in Air India.

According to The Economic Times, Kannan stated at a briefing that the operational merging process is projected to begin by early to mid-next year, following the legal approvals. He also noted that all competition clearances are due by the end of the current quarter in March.

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) gave its approval for the proposed merger on 1 September 2023. At present, Vistara, a joint venture between Tatas and Singapore Airlines, operates a fleet of 67 aircraft.