Air India to be handed over to Tatas today

Air India will get a new Board on Thursday as the airline sees a change of guard. The government of India will formally transfer the reins of the airline to Tata Sons, which won the bid for the airline as part of a privatisation process.

Watch | How Air India came back to the Tatas

“Air India will hold its final Board meeting today. The official nominees of the Board will resign and the new Board will take over,” said a government official.

Earlier this week, the airline finalised its closing balance sheet and sent it to Tatas for a review.

With the transfer on Thursday, Tatas will be in control of three airlines in the country and a total of nearly 27% market share in the aviation sector. The other airlines are Vistara in which Tatas have a 51% stake and Air Asia where they have a 84% stake.

Last year in October, Tata Sons subsidiary, Talace Pvt. Ltd. emerged as the winning bidder for the debt-laden national carrier after quoting an enterprise value of ₹18,000 crore as part of a disinvestment process undertaken by the government.

The Tatas will own 100% stake in Air India, as also 100% in its international low-cost arm Air India Express and 50% in the ground handling joint venture, Air India SATS. Apart from 141 planes and slots, and access to a network of 173 destinations including 55 international ones, Tatas will also have the ownership of iconic brands like Air India, Indian Airlines & the Maharajah.