Disinvestment-bound Air India’s loss soars to a record

Air India Ltd plunged to a record net loss underscoring an intensely competitive domestic aviation market and adding strength to calls for privatizing the national carrier.

The New Delhi-based carrier posted a provisional net loss of ₹8,556.35 crore in 2018-19, civil aviation minister Hardeep Singh Puri told the Lok Sabha on Thursday. It had a net loss of ₹5,348.18 crore in the previous year.

Accumulated losses at Air India have swelled to about 69,575.64 crore in the past decade, Puri said.