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Air India is the flag carrier airline of
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, headquartered at
New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...
. It is owned by Talace Private Limited, a
Special-Purpose Vehicle A special-purpose entity (SPE; or, in Europe and India, special-purpose vehicle/SPV; or, in some cases in each EU jurisdiction, FVC, financial vehicle corporation) is a legal entity (usually a limited company of some type or, sometimes, a limite ...
(SPV) of
Tata Sons Tata Sons Private Limited is the parent company of the Tata Group and holds the bulk of shareholding in the Tata group of companies including their land holdings across India, tea estates and steel plants. It is a privately owned conglomerate of ...
, after Air India Limited's former owner, the
Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...
, completed the sale. Air India operates a fleet of Airbus and Boeing aircraft serving 102 domestic and international destinations. The airline has its hub at Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi, alongside several focus cities across India. Air India is the largest international carrier out of India with an 18.6% market share. Over 60 international destinations are served by Air India across four continents. The airline became the 27th member of Star Alliance on 11 July 2014. The airline was founded by
J. R. D. Tata Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata (29 July 1904 – 29 November 1993) was a French-Indian aviator, industrialist, entrepreneur and chairman of Tata Group. Born into the Tata family of India, he was the son of noted businessman Ratanji Dadabhoy ...
as Tata Airlines in 1932; Tata himself flew its first single-engine de Havilland Puss Moth, carrying
air mail Airmail (or air mail) is a mail transport service branded and sold on the basis of at least one leg of its journey being by air. Airmail items typically arrive more quickly than surface mail, and usually cost more to send. Airmail may be the ...
from
Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...
's Drigh Road Aerodrome to Bombay's Juhu aerodrome and later continuing to
Madras Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...
(currently
Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...
). After World War II, it became a
public limited company A public limited company (legally abbreviated to PLC or plc) is a type of public company under United Kingdom company law, some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth jurisdictions, and the Republic of Ireland. It is a limited liability company ...
and was renamed as ''Air India''. On 21 February 1960, it took delivery of its first
Boeing 707 The Boeing 707 is an American, long-range, narrow-body airliner, the first jetliner developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype first flown in 1954, the initial first flew on December 20, ...
named ''Gauri Shankar'' and became the first Asian airline to induct a jet aircraft in its fleet. In 2000–01, attempts were made to privatise Air India and from 2006 onwards, it suffered losses after its merger with Indian Airlines. Another privatisation attempt was launched in 2017, which concluded with ownership of the airline and associated properties reverting to Tata in 2022. Air India also operates flights to domestic and Asian destinations through its subsidiary Air India Express. Air India's mascot is ''the
Maharajah Mahārāja (; also spelled Maharajah, Maharaj) is a Sanskrit title for a "great ruler", "great king" or " high king". A few ruled states informally called empires, including ruler raja Sri Gupta, founder of the ancient Indian Gupta Empire, an ...
'' (Emperor) and the logo consists of a flying swan with the wheel of Konark inside it.


History


Early years (1932–1945)


As Tata Air Services

Air India had its origin as Tata Air Services later renamed to Tata Airlines founded by
J. R. D. Tata Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata (29 July 1904 – 29 November 1993) was a French-Indian aviator, industrialist, entrepreneur and chairman of Tata Group. Born into the Tata family of India, he was the son of noted businessman Ratanji Dadabhoy ...
of
Tata Sons Tata Sons Private Limited is the parent company of the Tata Group and holds the bulk of shareholding in the Tata group of companies including their land holdings across India, tea estates and steel plants. It is a privately owned conglomerate of ...
, an Indian aviator and business tycoon. In April 1932, Tata won a contract to carry mail for Imperial Airways and the aviation department of Tata Sons was formed with two single-engine de Havilland Puss Moths. On 15 October 1932, Tata flew a Puss Moth carrying
air mail Airmail (or air mail) is a mail transport service branded and sold on the basis of at least one leg of its journey being by air. Airmail items typically arrive more quickly than surface mail, and usually cost more to send. Airmail may be the ...
from
Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...
to
Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
(currently
Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
) and the aircraft continued to
Madras Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...
(currently
Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...
) piloted by Nevill Vintcent, a former
Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...
pilot and friend of Tata. The airline fleet consisted of a Puss Moth aircraft and a
de Havilland Leopard Moth The de Havilland DH.85 Leopard Moth is a three-seat high-wing cabin monoplane designed and built by the de Havilland Aircraft Company in 1933. Design and construction It was a successor to the DH.80 Puss Moth and replaced it on the company's ...
. Initial service included weekly airmail service between Karachi and Madras via
Ahmedabad Ahmedabad ( ; Gujarati: Amdavad ) is the most populous city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ahmedabad district and the seat of the Gujarat High Court. Ahmedabad's population of 5,570,585 (per t ...
and Bombay. In its first year of operation, the airline flew , carrying 155 passengers and of mail and made a profit of .


As Tata Airlines

The airline launched its first domestic flight from Bombay to
Trivandrum Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...
with a six-seater
Miles Merlin The Miles M.4A Merlin was a 1930s British five-seat cabin monoplane built by Miles Aircraft Limited. Design and development The Merlin was designed by F.G. Miles of Philips and Powis, as a result of collaboration with G. Birkett of Birkett Ai ...
. In 1938, it was re-christened as ''Tata Air Services'' and later as ''Tata Airlines''. Colombo in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) and Delhi were added to the destinations in 1938. During the Second World War, the airline helped the Royal Air Force with troop movements, shipping of supplies, rescue of refugees and maintenance of aircraft.


Post-independence (1947–2000)


As Air India

After World War II, regular commercial service was restored in India and Tata Airlines became a
public limited company A public limited company (legally abbreviated to PLC or plc) is a type of public company under United Kingdom company law, some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth jurisdictions, and the Republic of Ireland. It is a limited liability company ...
on 29 July 1946 under the name ''Air India''. After Indian independence in 1947, 49% of the airline was acquired by the
Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...
in 1948. On 8 June 1948, a Lockheed Constellation L-749A named ''Malabar Princess'' (registered ''VT-CQP'') took off from
Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
bound for
London Heathrow Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others bei ...
marking the airline's first international flight.


Nationalisation

In 1953, the Government of India passed the Air Corporations Act and purchased a majority stake in the carrier from
Tata Sons Tata Sons Private Limited is the parent company of the Tata Group and holds the bulk of shareholding in the Tata group of companies including their land holdings across India, tea estates and steel plants. It is a privately owned conglomerate of ...
though its founder
J. R. D. Tata Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata (29 July 1904 – 29 November 1993) was a French-Indian aviator, industrialist, entrepreneur and chairman of Tata Group. Born into the Tata family of India, he was the son of noted businessman Ratanji Dadabhoy ...
would continue as Chairman until 1977. The company was renamed as Air India International Limited and the domestic services were transferred to Indian Airlines as a part of a restructuring. From 1948 to 1950, the airline introduced services to Nairobi in Kenya and to major European destinations Rome, Paris and
Düsseldorf Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in th ...
. The airline took delivery of its first Lockheed Constellation L-1049 and inaugurated services to Bangkok, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Singapore.


All-jet fleet

On 21 February 1960, Air India International inducted its first Boeing 707-420, thereby becoming the first Asian airline to enter the Jet Age. The airline inaugurated services to
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
on 14 May 1960. On 8 June 1962, the airline's name was officially truncated to ''Air India'' and on 11 June 1962, Air India became the world's first all-jet airline. In 1971, the airline took delivery of its first
Boeing 747-200B The Boeing 747 is a large, long-range wide-body airliner designed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in the United States between 1968 and 2022. After introducing the 707 in October 1958, Pan Am wanted a jet times its size, t ...
named ''Emperor Ashoka'' (registered ''VT-EBD'') and introduced a new ''Palace in the Sky'' livery and branding. In 1986, Air India took delivery of its first Airbus A310-300. In 1993, Air India took delivery of a
Boeing 747-400 The Boeing 747-400 is a large, long-range wide-body airliner produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes, an advanced variant of the initial Boeing 747. The "Advanced Series 300" was announced at the September 1984 Farnborough Airshow, targeting ...
named ''Konark'' (registered ''VT-ESM'') and operated the first non-stop flight between New York and Delhi.


Post-liberalisation (since 2000)

In 2000–01, attempts were made to re-privatize Air India. In 2000, Air India introduced services to Shanghai, China. On 23 May 2001, the Ministry of Civil Aviation charged Michael Mascarenhas, the then-managing director, with corruption. According to the ministry reports, the airline lost approximately because of extra commissions that Mascarenhas sanctioned and he was later suspended from the airline. In May 2004, Air India launched a wholly owned low cost subsidiary called
Air-India Express Air India Express is an Indian low-cost airline headquartered in Kochi, Kerala. It is operated by Air India Express Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Indian flag carrier airline Air India. It operates around 649 flights per week to 33 desti ...
connecting cities in India with the Middle East and Southeast Asia. Until 2007, Air India mainly operated on international long-haul routes while Indian Airlines operated on domestic and international short-haul routes.


Indian Airlines merger

In 2007, Air India and Indian Airlines were merged under Air India Limited and the airline took delivery of its first Boeing 777 aircraft. The airline was invited to be a part of the Star Alliance in 2007. The combined losses for Air India and Indian Airlines in 2006–07 were and after the merger, it went up to by March 2009. In July 2009,
State Bank of India State Bank of India (SBI) is an Indian multinational public sector bank and financial services statutory body headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. SBI is the 49th largest bank in the world by total assets and ranked 221st in the ''Fortune ...
was appointed to prepare a road map for the recovery of the airline. The carrier sold three Airbus A300 and one
Boeing 747-300 The Boeing 747 is a large, long-range wide-body airliner designed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in the United States between 1968 and 2022. After introducing the 707 in October 1958, Pan Am wanted a jet times its size, t ...
M in March 2009 for $18.75 million to finance the debt. By March 2011, Air India had accumulated a debt of and an operating loss of , and was seeking from the government. A report by the Comptroller and Auditor General blamed the decision to buy 111 new aircraft and the ill-timed merger with Indian Airlines for the poor financial situation. In August 2011, the invitation to join Star Alliance was suspended as a result of its failure to meet the minimum standards for the membership. The government pumped into Air India in March 2012. On 1 March 2009, Air India made
Frankfurt Airport Frankfurt Airport (; german: link=no, Flughafen Frankfurt Main , also known as ''Rhein-Main-Flughafen'') is a major international airport located in Frankfurt, the fifth-largest city of Germany and one of the world's leading financial centres ...
its international hub for onward connections to the United States from India. However, the airline shut down the Frankfurt hub on 30 October 2010 because of high operating costs. In 2010, financially less lucrative routes were terminated and the airline planned to open a new hub for its international flights at
Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...
. In 2012, a study commissioned by the Corporate Affairs Ministry recommended that Air India should be partly privatised. In May 2012, the carrier invited offers from banks to raise up $800 million via
external commercial borrowing External commercial borrowing (ECBs) are loans in India made by non-resident lenders in foreign currency to Indian borrowers. They are used widely in India to facilitate access to foreign money by Indian corporations and PSUs (public sector underta ...
and
bridge financing A bridge loan is a type of short-term loan, typically taken out for a period of 2 weeks to 3 years pending the arrangement of larger or longer-term financing. It is usually called a bridging loan in the United Kingdom, also known as a "caveat loan, ...
. In May 2012, the airline was fined $80,000 by the US Transportation Department for failing to post customer service and tarmac delay contingency plans on its website and adequately inform passengers about its optional fees. In 2013, the then-Civil Aviation Minister
Ajit Singh Ajit Singh may refer to: Politicians and rulers * Ajit Singh (politician) (1939–2021), founder and chief of the Rashtriya Lok Dal party in Uttar Pradesh * Ajit Singh (Bihar politician), Indian politician * Ajit Singh (Assam politician), cabinet m ...
stated privatisation was the key to the airline's survival. However, the opposition led by the BJP and the CPI(M) slammed the government. In 2013, the Indian government planned to delay equity infusion of that was slated to be infused into the airline slowly over a period of eight years. In January 2013, Air India cleared a part of its pending dues through funds raised by selling and leasing back the newly acquired
Boeing 787 Dreamliner The Boeing 787 Dreamliner is an American wide-body jet airliner developed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. After dropping its unconventional Sonic Cruiser project, Boeing announced the conventional 7E7 on January 29, 2003, ...
s. In March 2013, the airline posted its first positive
EBITDA A company's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (commonly abbreviated EBITDA, pronounced , , or ) is a measure of a company's profitability of the operating business only, thus before any effects of indebtedness, stat ...
after almost six years and 20% growth in its operating revenue since the previous financial year. Air India Limited split its engineering and cargo businesses into two separate subsidiaries, Air India Engineering Services Limited (AIESL) and Air India Transport Services Limited (AITSL) in 2013. In December 2013, the airline appointed veteran pilot SPS Puri as its head of operations. The appointment was criticised by the Air India pilots union as Puri allegedly has multiple violations to his name.


Star Alliance membership

Air India became the 27th member of the Star Alliance on 11 July 2014. In August 2015, it signed an agreement with
Citibank Citibank, N. A. (N. A. stands for " National Association") is the primary U.S. banking subsidiary of financial services multinational Citigroup. Citibank was founded in 1812 as the City Bank of New York, and later became First National City ...
and
State Bank of India State Bank of India (SBI) is an Indian multinational public sector bank and financial services statutory body headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. SBI is the 49th largest bank in the world by total assets and ranked 221st in the ''Fortune ...
to raise $300 million in external commercial borrowing to meet working capital requirements. For FY 2014–15, its revenue, operating loss and net loss were , , and compared FY 2011–12, which were , , and . As of May 2017, Air India is the third largest carrier in India (after
IndiGo Indigo is a deep color close to the color wheel blue (a primary color in the RGB color space), as well as to some variants of ultramarine, based on the ancient dye of the same name. The word "indigo" comes from the Latin word ''indicum'', m ...
and Jet Airways), with a market share of 13%, but with the largest international network.


AirAsia india acquisition

In November 2022, Air India has announced the acquisition of 100% shareholding in AirAsia India, turning it into a subsidiary of Air India.


Privatisation

On 28 June 2017, the
Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...
approved the
privatisation Privatization (also privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation when ...
of Air India. A committee has been set up to start the process. In March 2018, the Government issued an Expression of Interest (EOI) to sell 76% stake of Air India, along with low-cost airline Air India Express, and a 50% stake of AISATS, a ground handling joint venture with Singapore Airport Terminal Services (SATS). According to the EOI, the new owner would have to take on a debt of and a bid would have to be submitted by mid-May as the Government wanted to complete the selling process by the end of 2018, but no private firms showed any interest in buying the debt-laden airline. Having failed on previous occasions to sell the airline, the Government decided to sell 100% share of the airline and started its preparation in late-2019. On 27 January 2020, Government released the Expression of Interest (EOI) to invite bidders. This time the Government decided to sell 100% shares of both Air India and its budget carrier Air India Express as well as 50% shares of AISATS and to attract more bidders this time, the government has already decreased nearly of debts and liabilities in a
Special Purpose Vehicle A special-purpose entity (SPE; or, in Europe and India, special-purpose vehicle/SPV; or, in some cases in each EU jurisdiction, FVC, financial vehicle corporation) is a legal entity (usually a limited company of some type or, sometimes, a limited ...
(SPV). In September 2021, government issued fresh tenders for selling the airlines, where
Spice Jet SpiceJet is an Indian budget airline headquartered in Gurgaon, Haryana. It is the second largest airline in the country by number of domestic passengers carried, with a market share of 13.6% as of March 2019. The airline operates 630 daily fli ...
's Ajay Singh-led consortium and
Tata Sons Tata Sons Private Limited is the parent company of the Tata Group and holds the bulk of shareholding in the Tata group of companies including their land holdings across India, tea estates and steel plants. It is a privately owned conglomerate of ...
shown interest in the bid. Finally, on 8 October 2021, Air India, along with its low cost carrier Air India Express and fifty percent of AISATS, a ground handling company, were sold for to Talace Private Limited, a
Tata Sons Tata Sons Private Limited is the parent company of the Tata Group and holds the bulk of shareholding in the Tata group of companies including their land holdings across India, tea estates and steel plants. It is a privately owned conglomerate of ...
' SPV. On 27 January 2022, the airline was officially handed over to
Tata Group The Tata Group () is an Indian multinational conglomerate headquartered in Mumbai. Established in 1868, it is India's largest conglomerate, with products and services in over 150 countries, and operations in 100 countries across six continent ...
. On 14 February 2022, after its re-privatization, the airline appointed
İlker Aycı Mehmet İlker Aycı (born 1971, Istanbul) is a Turkish businessperson. Aycı was the advisor of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in 1994 and served as the CEO of several Turkish companies before becoming the chairman of Turkish Airlines from 2015 to 2022. H ...
, former Chairman of
Turkish Airlines Turkish Airlines ( Turkish: ''Türk Hava Yolları'') is the national flag carrier airline of Turkey. , it operates scheduled services to 340 destinations in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas, making it the largest mainline carrier in the w ...
from 2015 to 2022 as its new CEO and managing director. He was supposed to take the charge on or before 1 April 2022, but declined the offer in the backdrop of
Swadeshi Jagaran Manch The Swadeshi Jagaran Manch is a political and cultural pan-India movement that deals with economic issues. Since at least 2015 the SJM has been critical of foreign direct investment A foreign direct investment (FDI) is an investment in the ...
demanding Tata Sons to rethink its decision and the government to show sensitivity since the matter involved national security issues. The company declined immediate comment on the issue. Later, in March 2022,
Natarajan Chandrasekaran Natarajan Chandrasekaran (born 2 June 1963) is an Indian businessman, and the chairman of Tata Sons. He was chief operating officer (COO) and executive director of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), where in 2009, he became chief executive offic ...
, the chairman of
Tata Sons Tata Sons Private Limited is the parent company of the Tata Group and holds the bulk of shareholding in the Tata group of companies including their land holdings across India, tea estates and steel plants. It is a privately owned conglomerate of ...
was appointed as the chairman of the airline. Later in May 2022, Tata Sons appointed
Campbell Wilson Campbell Wilson is the chief executive officer and managing director of Air India, from 16 June 2022. He was previously the chief executive officer of Singaporean low-cost airline, Scoot. He was appointed the founding member of the airline on 18 ...
as Air India's
CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
and MD.


Corporate affairs and identity


Headquarters

Air India Limited is headquartered at the Indian Airlines House, New Delhi. Air India moved its headquarters from Air India Building,
Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
to Delhi in 2013. The former headquarters is a 23-storey tower on Marine Drive and was one of the targets of the
1993 Bombay bombings The 1993 Bombay bombings were a series of 12 terrorist bombings that took place in Bombay, Maharashtra, on 12 March 1993. The single-day attacks resulted in 257 fatalities and 1,400 injuries. The attacks were coordinated by Dawood Ibrahim, le ...
. Air India also maintains a corporate office on
Lexington Avenue Lexington Avenue, often colloquially abbreviated as "Lex", is an avenue on the East Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City that carries southbound one-way traffic from East 131st Street to Gramercy Park at East 21st Street. Along it ...
in
Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
as well as numerous cargo offices worldwide.


Subsidiaries


Current

Air India Regional was established as ''Alliance Air'', a wholly owned subsidiary of Indian Airlines on 1 April 1996 and started operations on 21 June 1996. It was renamed ''Air India Regional'' after the merger between Air India and Indian Airlines. Air India Express began operations on 29 April 2005 and was initially owned by
Air India Charters Air India Express is an Indian low-cost airline headquartered in Kochi, Kerala. It is operated by Air India Express Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Indian flag carrier airline Air India. It operates around 649 flights per week to 33 desti ...
. It operates flights from
South India South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union territo ...
to the Middle East and Southeast Asia.


Defunct

Air India became the first Asian airline to operate freighters when ''Air India Cargo'' was set up in 1954 and started its freighter operations with a
Douglas DC-3 The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II. It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper version ...
aircraft. Air India Cargo ended freighter aircraft operations in early 2012.


Mascot

Air India's mascot is ''the
Maharaja Mahārāja (; also spelled Maharajah, Maharaj) is a Sanskrit title for a "great ruler", "great king" or " high king". A few ruled states informally called empires, including ruler raja Sri Gupta, founder of the ancient Indian Gupta Empire, an ...
h'' ('' high king''). It was created by Bobby Kooka, the then-commercial director of Air India, and Umesh Rao, an artist with J. Walter Thompson Limited in 1946. Kooka stated that, "We call him a Maharajah for want of a better description. But his blood isn't blue. He may look like royalty, but he isn't royal". Air India adopted the Maharajah as its mascot in 1946. It was used in promoting it although initially designed only for the airline's memo-pads. The Maharajah was given a makeover in 2015 and the brand is represented by a younger version.


Logo and livery

Air India's colour scheme is red and white. The aircraft were painted in white with red palace style carvings on the outside of the windows and the airline's name written in red. The name is written in Hindi on the port side fuselage and in English on the port side tail. On the starboard side fuselage, the name is written in English, and in Hindi on the starboard tail. The window scheme was designed in line with the slogan ''Your Palace in the Sky''. The aircraft were earlier named after Indian kings and landmarks. In 1989, to supplement its ''Flying Palace'' livery, Air India introduced a new livery that included a metallic gold spinning wheel on a deep red-coloured tail and a Boeing 747, ''Rajendra Chola'', was the first aircraft to be painted in the new colours. The first logo of Air India was a
centaur A centaur ( ; grc, κένταυρος, kéntauros; ), or occasionally hippocentaur, is a creature from Greek mythology with the upper body of a human and the lower body and legs of a horse. Centaurs are thought of in many Greek myths as being ...
, a stylised version of Sagittarius shooting an arrow in a circle representing the wheel of Konark. The logo chosen by founder J. R. D. Tata was introduced in 1948 and represented the airline until 2007. On 22 May 2007, Air India and Indian Airlines unveiled their new livery consisting of a Flying Swan with the wheel of Konark placed inside it. The flying swan was morphed from the centaur logo and the chakra was derived from Indian's erstwhile logo. On 15 May 2007, Air India refreshed its livery, making the Rajasthani arches along the windows slightly smaller, extending a stylised line from the tail of the aircraft to the nose and painting the underbelly red. The new logo features on the tail and the engine covers with red and orange lines running parallel to each other from the front door to the rear door.


Art collection

Air India built a collection of Indian art from 1956 to the mid-2000s. The collection comprises works of important Indian artists and photographers of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, sculptures, wood carvings, glass paintings, a large collection of rare textiles, and more. Among the works are paintings by
M. F. Husain Maqbool Fida Husain (17 September 1915 – 9 June 2011) was an Indian artist known for executing bold, vibrantly coloured narrative paintings in a modified Cubist style. He was one of the most celebrated and internationally recognised Ind ...
and
V. S. Gaitonde Vasudeo S. Gaitonde (1924 – 10 August 2001), also known as V. S. Gaitonde, was regarded as one of India's foremost abstract painters. He received the Padma Shri by the Government of India in 1971. Early life and education Gaitonde was born ...
and sketches by Goan cartoonist
Mario Miranda Mário João Carlos do Rosário de Brito Miranda (2 May 1926 – 11 December 2011), popularly known as Mario Miranda or Mario de Miranda, was an Indian cartoonist and painter based in Loutolim in the Indian state of Goa. Miranda had been a ...
. Some of the company's first purchases helped launch the career of notable painter
B. Prabha B. Prabha (1933 – 2001) was a prolific Indian artist who worked primarily in oil on canvas. She is best known for her graceful, elongated figures of pensive rural women, each dominated by a single colour. By the time of her death, her work ha ...
. The artwork was often sent to be hung in Air India
booking office A box office or ticket office is a place where tickets are sold to the public for admission to an event. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through a hole in a wall or window, or at a wicket. By extension, the term is freq ...
s around the world and used in menus and advertising material. Sometimes artists would be sent to paint murals in foreign offices or be given airplane tickets in exchange for art. In 1967, the company commissioned ashtrays from
Salvador Dalí Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, Marquess of Dalí of Púbol (; ; ; 11 May 190423 January 1989) was a Spanish Surrealism, surrealist artist renowned for his technical skill, precise draftsmanship, and the striking and bizarr ...
and gifted a few hundred of them to its first-class passengers. As payment, Dali asked for a baby elephant, which Air India flew from
Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
to
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
, along with a mahout. In the late 2010s, a plan to form a museum from the collection was stalled by privatization plans. The artworks reside in a building in Nariman Point,
Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
.


Destinations

As of December 2019, Air India flies to a total of 102 destinations including 57 domestic destinations and 45 international destinations in 31 countries across five continents around the world. Its primary hub is located at Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi, and it has a secondary hub at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, Mumbai.


Alliance

Air India became the 27th member of Star Alliance on 11 July 2014. In February 2022, two weeks after its privatization, the airline signed an ''interline pact'' with AirAsia India, a low-cost airline owned by
Tata Group The Tata Group () is an Indian multinational conglomerate headquartered in Mumbai. Established in 1868, it is India's largest conglomerate, with products and services in over 150 countries, and operations in 100 countries across six continent ...
, for domestic flights.


Codeshare agreements

Air India has codeshare agreements with the following airlines: * Air Astana * Air Austral * Air Canada * Air India Express *
Air Seychelles Air Seychelles is the national airline of the Republic of Seychelles. Its head office is located at Seychelles International Airport on the island of Mahé and it operates inter-island and international flights and charter flights. History E ...
*
Avianca Avianca S.A. (acronym in Spanish for ''Aerovias del Continente Americano S.A.'', "Airways of the American Continent") is a Colombian airline. It has been the flag carrier of Colombia since December 5, 1919, when it was initially registered under ...
* Croatia Airlines *
EgyptAir Egyptair (Egyptian Arabic Egyptian Arabic, locally known as Colloquial Egyptian ( ar, العامية المصرية, ), or simply Masri (also Masry) (), is the most widely spoken vernacular Arabic dialect in Egypt. It is part of the Afro-A ...
* Ethiopian Airlines *
EVA Air EVA Airways Corporation (pronounced as three letters: ; ) (), of which "EVA" stands for Evergreen Airways, is a Taiwanese international airline based at Taoyuan International Airport near Taipei, Taiwan, operating passenger and dedicated carg ...
*
Fiji Airways Fiji Airways (trading as and formerly known as Air Pacific) is the flag carrier airline of Fiji and operates international services from its hubs in Fiji to 13 countries and 26 cities including, Australia, New Zealand, Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, K ...
*
Hong Kong Airlines Hong Kong Airlines Limited (stylised as HONGKONG AIRLINES) is an airline based in Hong Kong, with its headquarters in the Tung Chung district and its main hub at Hong Kong International Airport. It was established in 2006 as a member of t ...
*
LOT Polish Airlines LOT Polish Airlines, legally incorporated as Polskie Linie Lotnicze LOT S.A. (, ''flight''), is the flag carrier of Poland. Established in 1928, LOT was a founding member of IATA and remains one of the world's oldest airlines in operation. Wit ...
*
Lufthansa Deutsche Lufthansa AG (), commonly shortened to Lufthansa, is the flag carrier of Germany. When combined with its subsidiaries, it is the second- largest airline in Europe in terms of passengers carried. Lufthansa is one of the five founding m ...
*
Myanmar Airways International Myanmar Airways International Co., Ltd. ( my, အပြည်ပြည်ဆိုင်ရာ မြန်မာ့လေကြောင်းလိုင်း) is a privately owned airline headquartered in Yangon, Myanmar. It operates sched ...
*
Royal Brunei Airlines Royal Brunei Airlines Sdn Bhd (RB) ( ms, Penerbangan DiRaja Brunei, Jawi: ) is the national flag carrier airline of Brunei Darussalam, headquartered in the RB Campus in Bandar Seri Begawan. It is wholly owned by the Government of Brunei Da ...
*
Singapore Airlines Singapore Airlines (abbreviation: SIA) is the flag carrier airline of the Republic of Singapore with its Airline hub, hub located at Singapore Changi Airport. The airline is notable for highlighting the Singapore Girl as its central figure in ...
*
SriLankan Airlines SriLankan Airlines (formerly known as Air Lanka) is the flag carrier of Sri Lanka and a member airline of the Oneworld airline alliance. It is currently the largest airline in Sri Lanka by number of aircraft and destinations and was launched i ...
* Swiss International Air Lines * TAP Air Portugal *
Thai Airways International Thai Airways International Public Company Limited, trading as THAI (, th, บริษัท การบินไทย จำกัด (มหาชน)) is the flag carrier airline of Thailand. Formed in 1961, the airline has its corporate h ...
*
Turkish Airlines Turkish Airlines ( Turkish: ''Türk Hava Yolları'') is the national flag carrier airline of Turkey. , it operates scheduled services to 340 destinations in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas, making it the largest mainline carrier in the w ...
Note that codeshare operations have been suspended due to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
.


Fleet


Fleet information

In 1932, Air India started operations with a de Havilland Puss Moth. It inducted its first Boeing 707-420 named ''Gauri Shankar'' (registered ''VT-DJJ''), thereby becoming the first Asian airline to induct a jet aircraft in its fleet and on 4 August 1993, Air India took the delivery of its first Boeing 747-400 named ''Konark'' (registered ''VT-ESM''). Apart from the Boeing aircraft, Air India also operates a wide range of Airbus aircraft. In 1989, Indian Airlines introduced the Airbus A320-200 aircraft, which Air India now uses to operate both domestic and international short haul flights. In 2005, Indian Airlines introduced smaller A319s, which are now used mainly on domestic and regional routes. After the merger in 2007, Air India inducted the biggest member of the A320 family, the A321, to operate mainly on international short haul and medium haul routes. At the same time, Air India leased Airbus A330s to operate on medium-long haul international routes. Currently Air India has many narrow body aircraft for domestic destinations like A320, A321 and A320 neo. Air India has also many wide body aircraft like Boeing 777-200LR, Boeing 777-300ER, Boeing 747-400 and Boeing 787-8 mainly for international destinations. Air India Express, a subsidiary of Air India has a fleet of 25 Boeing 737-800. On 17 June 2019, Air India grounded its last Airbus A320 classic fleet, which flown its last flight from Delhi to Mumbai.


Fleet restructuring

As a part of the financial restructuring, Air India sold five of its eight
Boeing 777-200LR The Boeing 777, commonly referred to as the Triple Seven, is an American long-range wide-body airliner developed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. It is the world's largest twinjet. The 777 was designed to bridge the gap betw ...
aircraft to
Etihad Airways Etihad Airways ( ar, شَرِكَة ٱلْاِتِّحَاد لِلطَّيْرَان, sharikat al-ittiḥād li-ṭ-ṭayarān) is one of two flag carriers of the United Arab Emirates (the other being Emirates). Its head office is in Khalifa ...
in December 2013. According to the airline, plans for introducing ultra-long flights with service to
Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
,
San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
, and
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
were cancelled due to factors like high fuel prices and weak demand. Air India flights to San Francisco have been resumed with more new international destinations. On 24 April 2014, Air India issued a tender for leasing 14
Airbus A320 The Airbus A320 family is a series of Narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body airliners developed and produced by Airbus. The A320 was launched in March 1984, Maiden flight, first flew on 22 February 1987, and was introduced in April 1988 by Air F ...
aircraft for up to six years, to strengthen its domestic network. Air India has purchased many Boeing 787-8 dreamliners to strengthen international operations.


Services


Cabin

The Boeing 777-200LR/777-300ER and
Boeing 747-400 The Boeing 747-400 is a large, long-range wide-body airliner produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes, an advanced variant of the initial Boeing 747. The "Advanced Series 300" was announced at the September 1984 Farnborough Airshow, targeting ...
aircraft operated on long haul flights are in a three-class configuration.
Boeing 787 Dreamliner The Boeing 787 Dreamliner is an American wide-body jet airliner developed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. After dropping its unconventional Sonic Cruiser project, Boeing announced the conventional 7E7 on January 29, 2003, ...
and
Airbus A321 The Airbus A321 is a member of the Airbus A320 family of short to medium range, narrow-body, commercial passenger twin engine jet airliners; it carries 185 to 236 passengers. It has a stretched fuselage which was the first derivative of the ba ...
aircraft have a two-class configuration.
Airbus A320 The Airbus A320 family is a series of Narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body airliners developed and produced by Airbus. The A320 was launched in March 1984, Maiden flight, first flew on 22 February 1987, and was introduced in April 1988 by Air F ...
aircraft operated on domestic- and short haul international flights are in either an all-economy configuration or a two-class configuration. Airbus A319 aircraft have a full economy configuration. Air India serves meals on all international flights and on domestic flights with a flight duration of over 90 minutes.


In-flight entertainment

Air India aircraft are equipped with
Thales Thales of Miletus ( ; grc-gre, Θαλῆς; ) was a Greek mathematician, astronomer, statesman, and pre-Socratic philosopher from Miletus in Ionia, Asia Minor. He was one of the Seven Sages of Greece. Many, most notably Aristotle, regarded him ...
i3000
in-flight entertainment In-flight entertainment (IFE) refers to the entertainment available to aircraft passengers during a flight. In 1936, the airship ''LZ 129 Hindenburg, Hindenburg'' offered passengers a piano, lounge, dining room, smoking room, and bar during the ...
system. Passengers can choose from five channels airing Hindi and English content. Air India's Boeing 777, 747 and 787 aircraft are also equipped with personal on demand in-flight entertainment systems on which passengers can choose from available content. ''Showtime'' is the official entertainment guide published by Air India. ''Shubh Yatra'' (meaning ''Happy Journey'') is a bilingual in-flight magazine published in English and Hindi by Air India.


Frequent flyer programme

''Flying Returns'' is Air India's
frequent-flyer programme A frequent-flyer program (American English) or frequent-flyer programme (British English) is a loyalty program offered by an airline. Many airlines have frequent-flyer programs designed to encourage airline customers enrolled in the program ...
. It is shared by Air India and its subsidiaries. The points can be redeemed for awards travel on some other airlines.


Premium lounges

The ''Maharaja Lounge'' (English: ''Emperor's Lounge'') is available for the use of First and Business class passengers. Air India shares lounges with other international airlines at international airports that do not have a Maharaja Lounge available. There are eight Maharaja Lounges: ;India *
Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport is an international airport serving Mumbai and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). It is the second busiest airport in the country in terms of total and international passenger traffic aft ...
, Mumbai *
Indira Gandhi International Airport Indira Gandhi International Airport is the primary international airport serving Delhi, the capital of India, and the National Capital Region (NCR). The airport, spread over an area of , is situated in Palam, Delhi, southwest of the New De ...
, Delhi * Chennai International Airport, Chennai *
Kempegowda International Airport Kempegowda International Airport is an international airport serving Bangalore, the capital of Karnataka, India. Spread over , it is located about north of the city near the suburb of Devanahalli. It is owned and operated by Bengaluru Inte ...
, Bangalore *
Rajiv Gandhi International Airport Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) is an international airport that serves Hyderabad, the capital of the Indian state of Telangana. It is located in Shamshabad, about south of Hyderabad and it was opened on 23 March 2008 to replace B ...
, Hyderabad *
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport (SVPIA) is an international airport serving the twin cities of Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar in Gujarat, India. The airport is located in Hansol, north of Ahmedabad. It is named after Sardar Vallabh ...
, Ahmedabad ;International * John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York City *
Heathrow Airport Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others be ...
, London *
San Francisco International Airport San Francisco International Airport is an international airport in an unincorporated area of San Mateo County, south of Downtown San Francisco. It has flights to points throughout North America and is a major gateway to Europe, the Middle E ...
, San Francisco


Missions


Gulf War evacuation

The airline entered the
Guinness Book of World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
for the most people evacuated by civil airliner. Over 111,000 people were evacuated from Amman to Mumbai, a distance of , by operating 488 flights from 13 August to 11 October 1990  – lasting 59 days. The operation was carried out during Persian Gulf War to evacuate
Indian expatriates Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...
from
Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...
and
Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
. The event was later featured in the film ''
Airlift An airlift is the organized delivery of supplies or personnel primarily via military transport aircraft. Airlifting consists of two distinct types: strategic and tactical. Typically, strategic airlifting involves moving material long distanc ...
''.


Accidents and incidents

* On 27 December 1947, a Douglas C-48C (registered VT-AUG) carrying nineteen passengers and four crew en route from Karachi to Bombay,
crashed "Crashed" is the third U.S. rock single, (the fifth overall), from the band Daughtry's debut album. It was released only to U.S. rock stations on September 5, 2007. Upon its release the song got adds at those stations, along with some Alternativ ...
at Korangi Creek due to loss of control following instrument failure, killing all on board. This was the airline's first fatal accident. The aircraft had been notorious for electrical problems and had an unusual number of instrument replacements. * On 3 November 1950,
Air India Flight 245 Air India Flight 245 was a scheduled Air India passenger flight that crashed into Mont Blanc, France on the morning of 3 November 1950. The plane operating the flight was a Lockheed L-749A Constellation named ''Malabar Princess'', registered ...
, a Lockheed L-749 Constellation (registered VT-CQP, ''Malabar Princess'') carrying forty passengers and eight crew on a flight from Bombay to London via Cairo and Geneva, crashed on Mont Blanc in France, killing all on board. In 1966, Flight 101 crashed in nearly the exact same spot. * On 13 December 1950, a Douglas C-47B (registered VT-CFK) carrying 17 passengers and four crew from Bombay to
Coimbatore Coimbatore, also spelt as Koyamputhur (), sometimes shortened as Kovai (), is one of the major metropolitan cities in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Noyyal River and surrounded by the Western Ghats. Coimbato ...
, crashed into high ground near
Kotagiri Kotagiri or Kothagiri is a taluk and a Panchayat town in The Nilgiris District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is the third largest hill station in the Nilgiri hills. Kotagiri is located at . It has an average elevation of . Demographi ...
due to a navigational error, killing all on board. * On 15 September 1951, Douglas C-47A Dakota III VT-CCA lost control and crashed on takeoff from HAL Bangalore Airport with the autopilot turned on, killing a crew member; all 23 passengers survived. * On 9 May 1953, Douglas C-47A VT-AUD crashed shortly after takeoff from
Palam Airport Indira Gandhi International Airport is the primary international airport serving Delhi, the capital of India, and the National Capital Region (India), National Capital Region (NCR). The airport, spread over an area of , is situated in Palam, D ...
following a loss of control due to pilot error, killing all thirteen passengers and five crew on board. * On 11 April 1955, a bomb exploded in the right main landing gear bay of Lockheed L-749A Constellation VT-DEP ''
Kashmir Princess The ''Kashmir Princess'', or Air India Flight 300, was a chartered Lockheed L-749A Constellation flight owned by Air India. On 11 April 1955, it was damaged in midair by a bomb explosion and crashed into the South China Sea while en route f ...
'', carrying eleven passengers and eight crew from Hong Kong to Jakarta. The right wing caught fire and the crew were forced to attempt a water landing. The wingtip dug into the water and the aircraft crashed, killing sixteen of the occupants. * On 19 July 1959 ''Rani of Aera'', a
Lockheed L-1049G Super Constellation The Lockheed L-1049 Super Constellation is an American aircraft, a member of the Lockheed Constellation aircraft line. The L-1049 was Lockheed's response to the successful Douglas DC-6 airliner, first flying in 1950. The aircraft was also produc ...
(registered VT-DIN) carrying 46 people (39 passengers and seven crew) crashed on approach to Santacruz Airport in conditions of poor visibility due to rain. The aircraft suffered damage beyond repair and was written off. There were no fatalities. * On 24 January 1966, Air India Flight 101 ''Kanchenjunga'', a Boeing 707-420 (registered VT-DMN) carrying 117 people (106 passengers and 11 crew) crashed on Mont Blanc, France killing all on board including the noted Indian scientist
Homi J. Bhabha Homi Jehangir Bhabha, (30 October 1909 – 24 January 1966) was an Indian nuclear physicist, founding director, and professor of physics at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR). Colloquially known as "Father of Indian nuclear pro ...
. * On 1 January 1978, Air India Flight 855 ''Emperor Ashoka,'' a
Boeing 747-200B The Boeing 747 is a large, long-range wide-body airliner designed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in the United States between 1968 and 2022. After introducing the 707 in October 1958, Pan Am wanted a jet times its size, t ...
(registered VT-EBD) crashed into the
Arabian Sea The Arabian Sea ( ar, اَلْبَحرْ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Bahr al-ˁArabī) is a region of the northern Indian Ocean bounded on the north by Pakistan, Iran and the Gulf of Oman, on the west by the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel ...
after takeoff from
Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
after the pilot became disorientated due to instrument failure, killing all 190 passengers and 23 crew on board. * On 21 June 1982,
Air India Flight 403 Air India Flight 403 was a scheduled Air India passenger flight that crashed at Sahar International Airport in Bombay, India on 21 June 1982. It was likely caused by miscalculated altitude in a heavy rainstorm. Accident On 21 June 1982, Air I ...
''Gouri Shankar'', a Boeing 707-420 (registered VT-DJJ) carrying 99 passengers and 12 crew from
Kuala Lumpur , anthem = '' Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , su ...
to Bombay via Madras crashed while landing at
Sahar International Airport Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport is an international airport serving Mumbai and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). It is the second busiest airport in the country in terms of total and international passenger traffic aft ...
during a rainstorm. The fuselage broke apart and seventeen people including two crew members were killed. * On 23 June 1985, Air India Flight 182 ''Emperor Kanishka'', a Boeing 747-200B (registered VT-EFO), was blown up in mid-air by a suitcase-bomb planted by Babbar Khalsa terrorists allegedly as revenge for the Indian Government's
operation Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Ma ...
on the Golden Temple in June 1984. The flight was on the first leg on its Montreal-London-Delhi-Bombay flight when it exploded off the coast of
Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...
, Ireland in the Atlantic Ocean. All 307 passengers and 22 crew on board died. * On 7 May 1990, Air India Flight 132 ''Emperor Vikramaditya'', a Boeing 747-200B (registered VT-EBO) flying on the London-Delhi-Bombay route carrying 215 people (195 passengers and 20 crew) caught fire on touch down at
Delhi airport Indira Gandhi International Airport is the primary international airport serving Delhi, the capital of India, and the National Capital Region (NCR). The airport, spread over an area of , is situated in Palam, Delhi, southwest of the New Del ...
due to a failure of an engine pylon-to-wing attachment. There were no fatalities but the aircraft was damaged beyond repair and written off.


See also

*
Indians in the New York City metropolitan area Indians in the New York City metropolitan area constitute one of the largest and fastest-growing ethnicities in the New York City metropolitan area of the United States. The New York City region is home to the largest and most prominent Indian ...
*
Edison South Monroe Township is a Township (New Jersey), township in southern Middlesex County, New Jersey, Middlesex County, in New Jersey, United States. It is part of the outer-ring suburbs of the New York metropolitan area. The township is also centrally ...
*
List of airlines of India This is a list of airlines which have an air operator's certificate issued by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation of India. Scheduled airlines Currently, 9 scheduled airlines are operating in India. Regional airlines Charter a ...
* List of airports in India * Newark, New Jersey area *
Transport in India Transport in India consists of transport by land, water and air. Road transport is the primary mode of transport for most Indian citizens, and India's road transport systems are among the most heavily used in the world. India's road network i ...
* Star Alliance * Air New Zealand *
Lufthansa Deutsche Lufthansa AG (), commonly shortened to Lufthansa, is the flag carrier of Germany. When combined with its subsidiaries, it is the second- largest airline in Europe in terms of passengers carried. Lufthansa is one of the five founding m ...
* Air Canada *
United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. (commonly referred to as United), is a major American airline headquartered at the Willis Tower in Chicago, Illinois.
*
All Nippon Airways , also known as ANA (''Ē-enu-ē'') or is an airline in Japan. Its headquarters are located in Shiodome City Center in the Shiodome area of Minato ward of Tokyo. It operates services to both domestic and international destinations and had mo ...
*
Etihad Airways Etihad Airways ( ar, شَرِكَة ٱلْاِتِّحَاد لِلطَّيْرَان, sharikat al-ittiḥād li-ṭ-ṭayarān) is one of two flag carriers of the United Arab Emirates (the other being Emirates). Its head office is in Khalifa ...


References


External links

* {{authority control Airlines of India Indian brands Tata Sons subsidiaries Indian companies established in 1932 Airlines established in 1932 Formerly government-owned companies of India Companies nationalised by the Government of India Companies based in New Delhi Star Alliance Indian companies established in 1946