Vistara Becomes a Member of the IATA

Created as a joint venture between Singapore International Airlines and TATA Sons, Vistara Airlines has just been accepted as the third Indian member of the global airline alliance, the IATA. With already 280 airline members worldwide, the IATA is the biggest airline alliance in the world.

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The move came as a surprise for many, as Vistara, a low cost Indian airline, has not yet launched any international destinations. However, the airline is currently preparing for its international debut in the coming months. To start international operations, an Indian airline is forced to have at least 20 aircraft in its fleet. Vistara received their 20th aircraft earlier this month. In a statement, the airline said, "Vistara received its 20th aircraft and its seventh Airbus A320neo powered by CFM engines... With this milestone addition to its fleet, Vistara completes its initial aircraft order as planned at the early stages of setting up the airline. Vistara will use the new aircraft to increase frequencies on existing routes to scale up operations in the domestic market, while gearing up to start international operations soon".

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The IATA enables airlines to sign agreements with each other, including code-sharing among others. The alliance already has over 280 members worldwide which represents 83% of all air traffic over 120 countries. Vistara's Chief Executive Officer said in a release, “We’re extremely proud to join the international community of IATA members. This membership couldn’t have come at a better time as we gear up to launch our international operations soon”. IATA Regional Vice President for Asia-Pacific, Conrad Clifford said, “We welcome Vistara as IATA's newest member airline. India is a key aviation market [and] it is expected to become the third largest aviation market by 2024. We look forward to working with Vistara in shaping IATA’s priorities for India and the global aviation industry”

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Vistara currently has a fleet of 20 aircraft with 2 Airbus A320neo aircraft on order. The airline has continued to thrive, and with 22 domestic destinations currently served so far, the airline can be considered one of the fastest growing airlines as it started operations only 3 years ago on the 9 of January 2015.