The Tata Group has requested the Competition Commission of India’s approval for a deal to merge its full-service carriers Vistara and Air India. Tata SIA Airlines Ltd (TSAL) is a joint venture between Tata Sons Pvt Ltd (TSPL) and Singapore Airlines (SIA), with Tata Sons and SIA having a 51% and 49% stake, respectively, and operates under the brand name Vistara. The proposed deal involves the merger of TSAL (Vistara) into Air India Ltd (AIL), with Air India being the surviving entity, and the acquisition of shares in the merged entity by SIA and TSPL. Post-completion, TSPL will hold a 51% equity of the merged entity, and SIA will be holding a 25.1% stake in the entity. The merger aims to have a single low-cost carrier for the Air India group, and post-merger, the entity will be branded as ‘Air India Express’. Currently, Air India and Vistara’s market share stood at 18.3% in October. If AirAsia India (now known as AIX Connect) is also included, then the cumulative market share of Tata Group-owned airlines in the domestic market will be 25.9%.