AI-Indian merger to be complete by June: Thulasidas

New Delhi, Apr 25: All legal formalities relating to the merger ofgovernment-owned Air India (AI) and Indian will be complete by June andintegration of flight schedules could start by winter schedule(October-end).

Both airlines currently fly within a space of hours on many routesin southeast Asia and the Gulf, prompting critics to say that theycompete with each other rather than complimenting each other's role.

''In the next winter schedule, the single merged entity will flyto common routes like the Gulf,'' said AI's chairman and managingdirector Vasudevan Thulasidas. He was talking to reporters on thesidelines of three-day US-India Aviation Partnership Summit here whichwound up today.

Mr Thulasidas said AI and Indian have formed working groups tointegrate ranks of manpower over the next 18 months. ''These workinggroups have already started meeting. The scheme of amalgamation willrequire approval from the boards.'' The two airlines, which onceenjoyed a monopoly, have steadily lost market share to newer privateplayers and have been criticised for their ageing fleets and bloatedworkforce. With the merger, they plan to take on international and morenimble-footed domestic carriers with a fleet of spanking new aircraft.

AI has signed up for 68 Boeing planes while Indian, formerly knownas Indian Airlines, last year ordered 43 new Airbus aircraft.

The government has registered a new company called NationalAviation Company Ltd to amalgamate AI and Indian along with theirlow-fare subsidiaries AI Express and Alliance Air.

''The merged entity will operate like a business venture, rather than apublic sector unit,'' said Mr Thulasidas. ''We'll divest some equitystake through initial public offering (IPO) of stock sale. The idea isto bring about a different culture with accountability to stockexchanges.'' He said the first of its brand new Boeing 777-200LR planewill arrive in June to serve Mumbai-New York non-stop. By then, it willalso start operating dedicated freighters following the conversion oftwo of its A310s from passenger configuration.

After that, it will receive one new plane every month as part ofthe 11 billion dollar order. ''With one brand, one balance sheet andone board of directors, we'll be in a different league.'' AI wasfounded as a private domestic carrier in 1932 by the Tata group andnamed Tata Airlines. It was once called ''little jewel'' because of itsimpeccable service. In 1946, the airline became a public company andwas named Air India, with the government taking 49 per cent with anoption to buy another two per cent. It is now fully owned by thegovernment.

Blending the names of domestic and international carriers, themerged entity could be called Air Indian, or maybe Indian Air. Anofficial announcement on the decision is expected soon.

Officials say the new airline's logo could be a mix of AI's famed Maharaja and Indian's Konark wheel.

The new airline having about 112 aircraft with both internationaland domestic footprint will set fresh benchmarks for efficiency andreliability, thus benefiting civil aviation sector in the country --especially the traveling public.

UNI