Today marks a year since Vistara, the Tata-Singapore Airlines (SIA) joint venture, merged with Air India. Much has happened since then, including a deadly crash of an Air India flight in June that saw only one survivor.
One year on, the turnaround of Air India continues to be a work in progress but slower than what many would have imagined. The snail’s pace, as critics would see it, is due to supply chain challenges, market dynamics and geopolitical challenges that have intensified since the merger.
Fleet, flights and market share
At the time of the merger, the airline proudly showcased its combined fleet of 298 aircraft, including those of Air India Express. The Air India-Vistara fleet was at 208 then. A year later, the fleet is down significantly to 187 aircraft, with a few more slated to leave the fleet. The fleet strength was expected to go up. Instead, it fell.
While the unfortunate crash in Ahmedabad saw one 787 being written off, the airline let go of its legacy B777-200LR. Subsequently, the former Delta Air Lines B777-200LRs are also returning after the end of lease. The six B777-300ERs, which it had announced it would get from Singapore Airlines, never made it to the airline.
Air India flew to 90 domestic and international destinations on the day of the merger as a combined entity. That translated to over 5,600 weekly flights.
This November, the weekly flights are down to 4,823, according to data shared by Cirium, an aviation analytics company. Air India has also suspended services to Washington, though it has managed to add flights to London Heathrow, a feather in its cap.
It also launched a number of seasonal and year-round destinations in India, including Bhuj, Gaya, and Jodhpur, along with a spate of codeshares like those with Kenya Airways and Air Astana.
However, the fleet is moving towards a synchronous operation as Air India retrofitted its A320neo from two-class to three-class to match the configuration of former Vistara planes and give a stable product in the market.
Market share
When Air India launched its ambitious Vihaan.AI transformational programme, it aimed to have a market share of 30% as a group within five years. The market conditions and the pace of growth meant that the group was within touching distance of this aim in a matter of months.
In September 2024, the last month when the four entities operated separately, the group had a market share of 29.2% in India. In December, the first full month of operations of the two entities, the market share dropped to 26.4%. As of September 2025, the domestic market share for the group stood at 27.4%. Data for October is awaited.
Tail Note
The next big leap for Air India is its focus on training. While it has inaugurated the Simulators in Gurugram, which is a partnership with Airbus, the much-talked-about aviation academy at Amravati in Maharashtra, which was to start in the second half of 2025, is yet to take wing. Slippages in timelines continue for the airline, with the 27 A320neo refit being completed only in October this year, from its initial deadline of June, which was later revised to September. The first of the 787s are expected back from refit by December, while the 777 fleet’s refit is now further delayed, making one question if the initial estimates were indeed well calculated or announced without much thought.
The airline has a long way to go, and while it celebrates the important milestone, it will have to work hard towards coming out of the “work in progress” mindset at the earliest.
The influx of 787-9 and A350s to the Air India fleet will help the airline have more aircraft in newer configurations with newer products. This will help compete well with the hubs in the region and attract more International transfer passengers, a buffer against the sliding rupee. The depreciation of the rupee impacted IndiGo’s Q2 results but would equally impact Air India, with the extent not being known as it is not a listed company.
The author, Ameya Joshi, is an aviation analyst.