AirAsia slashes its stake in India joint venture
AirAsia will reduce its stake in the Indian joint venture with Tata Sons, with the latter increasing its share of the business to 87%.
That sees AirAsia’s stake fall to just 13%, according to Times of India.
The AirAsia India JV was established more than five years ago but has yet to turn a profit.
Cash-strapped AirAsia also ceased operations of its Japan joint venture recently and its Airasia X long haul subsidiary is undergoing a difficult restructuring to stay afloat.
Although the AirAsia India brand will continue for now, Tata is reportedly making various operational changes to the business.
It will launch a new booking website focused on the India market to differentiate it from AirAsia Group’s global booking site.
Tata also has a separate JV with Singapore Airlines to run full service carrier Vistara, and is the front-runner to take over ownership of Air India.
AirAsia India operates a fleet of 33 aircraft but only has a market share of about 7%.
Written by Ray Montgomery, Asia Editor
TravelMole Editorial Team
Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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