Air India and Vistara complete merger, creating India’s largest full-service airline

Air India Group has officially completed its merger with Vistara, marking the creation of India’s largest full-service airline. This milestone comes just six weeks after the Group merged its low-cost carriers, Air India Express and AIX Connect (formerly Air Asia India), consolidating its airlines into a two-tiered structure under the five-year transformation programme, Vihaan.AI. With the new unified Air India Group, the airline now operates over 8,300 flights weekly on 312 routes, covering more than 100 domestic and international destinations with a fleet of 300 aircraft.

The newly combined Air India full-service entity will continue to provide enhanced passenger experiences, integrating Vistara’s signature services under a four-digit Air India code that begins with “2.” The merger has seen a smooth integration process, migrating more than 4,000 customer contracts and 4.5 million Club Vistara members to Air India’s loyalty programme, now rebranded as Maharaja Club. Additionally, Vistara’s operations, service style, and crew will be maintained to ensure continuity for loyal customers while expanding the brand’s reach.

Air India Group’s merger efforts align with larger modernisation goals, including commitments to over 500 new aircraft, a $400 million retrofit of legacy planes, and the development of a new 12-bay maintenance base by 2026.

Campbell Wilson, Air India’s CEO, emphasised that this consolidation marks the end of Air India’s restructuring phase and strengthens its mission to become a leading global airline. Singapore Airlines, previously a 49% shareholder in Vistara, now holds a 25.1% stake in the unified Air India Group.