Air India: The History Of India's Oldest Airline

With Air India a topic of discussion nowadays, it's with a sense of sadness and nostalgia that one remembers the once mighty maharaja of the skies.

Put on the block for a variety of reasons, including that it has been running losses for five years, India's oldest airline is well past its glory days. But it wasn't always like this.

Let's look at the history of the airline that brought India to the global map by acting as its brand ambassador.

1932: How it all started

Air India, formerly Air-India, was established in 1932 by the legendary industrialist and philanthropist JRD. Tata, who was also India¡¯s first licensed pilot. His fascination quickly turned into a plan to form India¡¯s first commercial airline.

The first scheduled service was inaugurated in the same year, flying mail on some routes for then-Imperial Airways.

Twitter/@TataCompanies

However, operations grew quickly, with the airline adding more destinations across India for mail, and then beginning to carry passengers. By the end of the first year, the carrier had flown 10.7 tons of mail and 155 passengers using the de Havilland Puss Moth, as per Simple Flying.

In 1938, the airline was renamed Tata Airlines and expanded internationally for the first time. The carrier added Colombo, Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) to its route map in addition to the dozen or so destinations in India.

During the Second World War, Tata Airlines¡¯ planes were all commandeered for military use. JRD Tata offered to build de Havilland Mosquitos to support the war effort and eventually made gliders instead. By 1942, he was looking to the post-war future of the airline and expanding into the west.

1947: Nationalisation

After India¡¯s independence, the government took a 49% stake in the carrier, which had been renamed Air India. Air India made its maiden long-haul flight from Mumbai to London Heathrow in 1948, a long-awaited step for JRD Tata.

Wikipedia

However, just five years later, the government nationalized Air India (and several other carriers) and took it out of Tata¡¯s control. Despite initially being angered by the move, JRD Tata returned to lead the airline as its chairman soon after.

1960: Introduction of Boeing aircraft

In 1960, with the introduction of the first Boeing 707-420 aircraft, Air India started using jets, and two years later, in June 1962, it became the world¡¯s first all-jet airline.

Post nationalisation: The rises and rise of Air India

For the next few decades, Air India became a household name and began to make its mark as one of the finest airlines in the world. It may have been small compared with other global competitors, but it had the kind of service that other airlines talked about with admiration and envy.

PTI

Air India's exceptional service was on its trans-Atlantic flights, where it took pleasure in stealing passengers away from its European and American competitors.

Creative advertisements

Air India was always known for its interesting advertisement ideas. It is also known for launching taglines that immediately grabbed the attention of the people.

Imgur

We all are well-aware of the Air India Maharaj that came up with some different and naughtier with every new launch, and it remained to be the prominent part of the company¡¯s promotion endeavours.

2018: Failed privatisation bid

In 2018, the Indian government tried to privatize Air India by selling 76% of its stake in the national carrier but failed because no private-sector buyer expressed interest in the state-owned airline.

2020: Disinvestment

In 2020, the Indian government approved a new proposal to divest 100% stake in Air India, which will be followed by the Expression of Interest (EoI) document to be issued this month.

2021: Tata Sons wins bid for Air India

Tata Sons won the bid for national carrier Air India, Bloomberg reported.

Tata's long history with the national carrier might well have another chapter if the deal goes through.