Summary
- Air India and Vistara boards will remain separate for not less than one other 12 months because the merger awaits regulatory approval by 2025.
- The operational merger of the 2 carriers is predicted to take not less than a 12 months, stretching through 2024, as merging networks and operations is a time-consuming process.
- The Vistara brand may live on for longer than expected attributable to its strong fame and pedigree within the country, as Air India goals to bring its service quality as much as Vistara’s standards.
Air India and Vistara won’t be integrating their boards any time soon, with reports stating the management teams will remain separate for not less than one other 12 months. The 2 airlines’ merger still awaits regulatory approval and is predicted to be finalized in 2025.
Air India and Vistara boards to stay separate
The 2 airlines are reportedly in no rush to integrate their boards because the deal progresses. Those near the matter imagine the merger will still take one other half-year to receive official clearances – Air India expects approvals from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), the Ministry of Civil Aviation, and the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) to return through by not less than the center of 2024, and can even face scrutiny from international regulators.
Photo: Abdul N Quraishi – Abs | Shutterstock
After this, the strategy of merging operations will begin – last month, Vistara CEO Vinod Kannan said the operational merger of the 2 carriers will take not less than a 12 months, possibly “” Echoing this, a top executive is quoted by the Economic Times as saying,
As Easy Flying reported last 12 months, the 2 airlines have already began with worker integration, aided by consultancy firm Deloitte. This included management and leadership assessments, together with a pilot town hall meeting.
No rush to drop Vistara brand
Under the terms of the merger, Vistara will stop to exist as a brand. Nonetheless, it’s unclear how long the Vistara brand will remain marketed or when its aircraft will probably be re-liveried in Air India colours. It will be the case that the brand stays alive for longer than expected.
Photo: Vistara
Brand expert Santosh Desai doesn’t imagine scrapping the brand is an excellent idea, because the Vistara name holds a pedigree unmatched within the country. Desai told the Economic Times,
Raising standards
Air India executives have admitted that the airline is behind Vistara by way of service quality, on-time performance and other metrics, and need to bring Air India up to those standards. Besides inducting recent, next-generation aircraft in the approaching years, Air India will refurbish its fleet interiors to bring the airline as much as modern standards.
How Much Of Vistara Will We See In The Recent Air India?
Vistara will lose its individual identity next 12 months, but does that mean that no trace of it’s going to be left?
Under the merger, 49% Vistara stakeholder Singapore Airlines can even retain a 25.1% stake in the brand new airline.
Are you looking forward to Air India and Vistara’s merger? Tell us within the comments.