Singapore Airlines and conglomerate Tata Sons, which co-founded Indian airline Vistara in 2015, have agreed to merge Vistara with Air India, which Tata acquired in January 2022, the airlines announced on Tuesday.

Singapore will also invest US$250 million for a 25.1 percent stake in the expanded Air India Group, which also includes Air India Express and AirAsia India. The airlines expect to complete the merger by March 2024, subject to regulatory approval.

In addition, Singapore and Tata have agreed to make additional capital investments if required through the end of FY2024. Based on Singapore’s stake, that amount could be as high as $615 million, according to the airline, to be paid only after the merger is complete.

The merger will “bolster SIA’s presence in India [and] strengthening its multi-hub strategy,” said Singapore.

After the merger, Air India Group would have 218 widebody and narrowbody aircraft serving 38 international and 52 domestic markets, according to Singapore.

Air India expands service

In addition, Air India announced last week that it is expanding its network in the United States and Europe. A new daily route between Mumbai and John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York will start on February 14, 2023. The new service would complement the airline’s Delhi-JFK route and four weekly flights to Newark Liberty International Airport. The Mumbai route is operated with Boeing 777-200LR aircraft.

For Europe, Air India will add new three weekly flights between Mumbai and Paris and four weekly flights between Mumbai and Frankfurt, Germany. Launch and sale dates will be announced shortly.

The airline will also start three times a week flights between Delhi and Milan from February 1st, three times a week flights between Delhi and Vienna from February 18th and three times a week flights between Delhi and Copenhagen from March 1st. Bookings for these three routes are now possible. All of these flights, as well as the routes to Paris and Frankfurt, will be operated using Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft with 18 business class and 238 economy class seats, according to Air India.