AI-Vistara merger: Air India’s international footprint will expand to more than 40 destinations

The Tata Group that is promoting Air India will boast of an expanded international presence following the merger with Vistara.

Accordingly, the merger will strengthen the airline’s presence on crucial long-haul routes and open new destinations such as Bali and Mauritius.

Speak with business line, Airline representatives said that after the merger, Air India will have a presence in more than 40 overseas destinations.

Currently, Air India flies to 35 international destinations, while Vistara flies to and from 18 overseas airports.

Excluding operations to the same destinations, the combined entity will operate in just over 40 ports of call, ranging from the continental United States to Australia.

Moreover, Air India will dominate on select flight routes to the United States, United Kingdom, Europe and Australia.

In particular, Air India’s substantial presence on these high-demand routes will provide better connectivity between Indian cities and metropolises such as London, Frankfurt, Paris and New York.

International passengers

Last year, Air India carried more than ten million international passengers, and Vistara transported nearly three million travelers to and from overseas destinations.

The combined network will also enable Air India to offer more direct flights and convenient connections, making it the airline of choice for both business and leisure travelers.

Furthermore, by adjusting frequencies to these major cities, the airline will be able to open routes to several new global destinations in the coming months.

The new cities likely to see Air India flights include Manila, Jakarta, Los Angeles, Dallas and Seattle.

Flights to these cities, an airline official said, are subject to the availability of aircraft and airport slots.

In addition to new destinations such as Bali and Mauritius, Air India will acquire a number of widebody aircraft in service with Vistara, such as the 787 and the A321neo.

Currently, Air India has 60 widebody aircraft such as the Airbus A350, Boeing 777s and Boeing 787s. For its part, Vistara has seven medium to long-range widebody aircraft.

Moreover, the introduction of Vistara’s aircraft will be important in maintaining Air India’s current global network as the airline looks to modernize its Boeing 777s. This exercise will result in downtime for several aircraft and will coincide with the return of some leased 777s.

Currently, Air India dominates international traffic from India to the US, European and Australian markets, while Vistara has a significant presence on routes in the Middle East, South East Asia and select European routes.

The merger of full-service airlines Air India and Vistara, which was successfully completed on November 12, 2024, follows the merger of low-cost airlines Air India Express and AIX Connect (formerly Air Asia India) on October 1, 2024.

Post-merger, Air India Group will operate a combined fleet of 300 aircraft covering 55 domestic and 48 international destinations, with 312 routes and 8,300 flights per week. The combined workforce now exceeds 30,000.