Jet Airways Spreads its Wings

On January 19, 2006, Jet Airways (India) Ltd. (JA) announced its decision to acquire Air Sahara (AS), the third largest airline company in India. It was to be the first acquisition in the history of Indian aviation industry. The deal valued at Rs.22.5 billion approx. ($500 million) was expected to enable JA, a leader in the airline industry, to further strengthen its position in the market.
With this acquisition, the company would have close to a 50 percent share of the Indian aviation market. In addition, the company would add aircraft, acquire more parking slots, more airline staff, and more international routes. The announcement of the deal received a mixed response. Some of JA's competitors complained about the possible monopoly that JA would have on the limited infrastructure available at most Indian airports. Some analysts believed that the Indian airline industry as a whole would benefit from the deal, as it would reduce duplication of routes and lead to less fragmentation of the full service segment.3


Neha Verma 3dr Sem