Acquisition of 16.67 per cent stakes of AirAsia finalised by Air India

The Tata Group’s Air India has agreed to the acquisition of a 16.67 per cent stake in AirAsia. As per reports, the brand name “Air Asia” can be us­ed for the next 12 months, but would be later merged with the brand name Air India Express. This development will help the Tata Group in controlling its three airlines through a shared infrastructure, which will help the company to save its costs. With the possible merger with Vistara, it will then operate its four airlines under one integrated platform.