The Indian aviation sector has made tremendous progress in the last 15 years. Since the privatization and allowing private players in the scenario, the things have indeed changed. There is no more monopoly of the state run Air India and as a result people can expect better services, cheap air tickets and high passenger traffic.
Many airlines have been started in the past that are doing excellent work in this arena. The low cost budget airlines have been the talk of the town and it is believed that Air Deccan pioneered the growth of them in India. And what follows next is the series of mergers and acquisitions in order to grab the maximum market share and passenger traffic. Some of the mergers and acquisitions that have taken in the past are:
- Jet Sahara Deal for about $450 million
- Merger of Air India and Indian Airlines
- Acquisition of Air Deccan by Kingfisher Airlines
Some of the best airlines in India are:
1. Jet Airways and JetLite: This is one of the largest clusters in the Indian aviation sector. Jet Airways was started in 1993 by Naresh Goyal with only few flights to metropolitan cities of India. Since then there is no looking back. The company operates more than 400 flights daily to most of the domestic and selected international destinations. The airlines have its hub at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport. It also has an international hub at Brussels.
JetLite is the low cost avatar of Jet Airways. The airlines is said to have taken birth from the Sahara takeover deal by Jet Airways. The airline is into the services of private taxis, low cost scheduled flights to some of the major economic centers of India. There are helicopter for charter services and photography.
Together both airlines has more than 25 per cent share of Indian market and overseas revenues.
2. Kingfisher Airlines: The Kingfisher Airlines is one of the best airlines in the world. The airlines have received the five star rating from the SkyTrax. The parent company of the airline is the United Breweries which is owned and managed by Dr. Vijay Mallaya. The airline rightly lives up to its slogan of “King of Good Times”. The airlines was stated 2003 and has received a positive response from the masses. The company operates more than 390 flights to more than 71 destinations that are located all over the world. The company also has acquired Air Deccan and renamed it to Kingfisher Red. This is the low cost avatar of Kingfisher Airlines. The airlines is said to have ontime performance of 87.5 per cent is highest amongst the Indian carriers. The flight cancellations stood at only 1.6 per cent which is also acceptable. The company carried more than 1 million passengers annually thereby making it the largest airlines in India. The market share of Kingfisher is about 21 per cent.
3. IndiGo: This is another excellent low cost budget airline and is owned by InterGlobe Enterprises. The company is headquartered in Gurgaon. The company started its operation in 2003 with only 22 jets and flights to 145 domestic destinations. The hub of the airlines is at Indira Gandhi International Airport and has been recipient of several awards of the industry. The market share of IndiGo Airlines is about 19 per cent and is fastly catching up with other airlines in India. The company is soon starting its international operations.
4. NACIL: NACIL stands for National Aviation Company of India Limited. This company is responsible for operating Air India, Indian Airlines, Air India Express and Alliance. The company is owned by Government of India and was formed after the merger of Air India and Indian Airlines. Today there is a primary airline, Air India along with two other subsidiaries that come under this company. The airlines has its operations to more than 100 destinations across India and world. The market share of 15 per cent.
5. SpiceJet: This is another later entrant in the field of low cost arena. The company was started Kalanithi Maran in 2004. The headquarters of the airline is at Indira Gandhi International Airport. The airlines have received the best low cost airline in the South and Central Asia award by Skytrax. The airline has an excellent on time performance of 85 per cent and has received only 3.5 complaints per 10,000 passengers. The airline is the second best low cost airlines in India. The number of passengers that has travelled with the airlines is about 4 million till now. All the aircrafts are named after the spices that are used in Indian food. The market share of SpiceJet is 14 per cent.
6. GoAir: This airline was established in 2004 by the Wadia Group. The airline operates to only 18 cities with 131 daily flights. The main base of the airlines is at Mumbai’s Chattrapati Shivaji International Airport. The market share of airlines in India is about 6 per cent.
7. Paramount Airways: This is another regional airline that is based in Chennai. It is the first airline in India to have pioneered the next generation Embraer 170/190. The airlines have its operations in Hyderabad, Chennai, Kochi, Madurai and Trivandrum. The airline started its operations in 2005 and is headquartered in Mumbai. The main USP of the airlines is the offering of the Business Class services at the price of Economy Class. The airlines have to cease all its operations in 2010 owing to a legal battle but it has resumed operations in 2011. The market shared of Paramount Airways is less than 1 per cent.