Singapore Airlines reports highest ever profit of $2.2 billion; says Vistara-AI merger ‘to bolster presence in India’
NEW DELHI: Singapore Airlines (SIA) has described the proposed merger of Vistara with Air India as a part of “several strategic initiatives to prepare for the future… to bolster SIA’s presence in the fast-growing Indian aviation market”. The southeast Asian carrier said this while announcing the highest ever net profit in its 76-year existence of $2.2 billion against a loss of $962 million in the previous fiscal. SIA has 49% stake in Vistara (remaining 51% with Tatas). Once Vistara merges with AI, SIA will have 25.1% stake in the mega AI.
“..when the demand for air travel surged in FY2022/23 after Singapore fully reopened its borders in April 2022, and as restrictions on international air travel eased globally, SIA and (its low cost arm) Scoot could ramp up operations at short notice… both carriers were among the first to launch flights as borders reopened, and captured the pent-up demand as air travel returned.
