wonwinglo
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NEW DELHI, India - India's leading private carrier Jet Airways will buy rival airline, Air Sahara, for US$500 million in a takeover that will create the country's largest airline, a Jet official told Scale-models.
Jet Airways (India) Ltd. and Air Sahara signed a deal the biggest in India's aviation history - late Wednesday, paving the way for a strategic alliance between the two carriers initially and a full fledged merger eventually, a Jet official said.
The deal signed by the top management of the two companies was to be ratified by the Jet's board of directors later Thursday.
The merged entity will have share of more than 50 percent in India's aviation market.
In 2005, Jet overtook state-owned Indian airlines in flying the most passengers. With the acquisition of Sahara, it will also now have the largest fleet of aircraft.
Jet flew 9 million passengers last year, up 14 percent from the previous year, while Indian airlines carried 8.7 million people in 2005, up 3.5 percent on year. Sahara flew 3.5 million.
India's aviation sector has experienced robust growth in recent years after being opened up to private carriers as part of a broader government liberalization program began in the early 1990s.
The competition has brought down fares and in the process attracting more passengers. Aviation officials expect the number of fliers to grow from around the current 20 million a year to some 50 million in 2010.
Jet Airways (India) Ltd. and Air Sahara signed a deal the biggest in India's aviation history - late Wednesday, paving the way for a strategic alliance between the two carriers initially and a full fledged merger eventually, a Jet official said.
The deal signed by the top management of the two companies was to be ratified by the Jet's board of directors later Thursday.
The merged entity will have share of more than 50 percent in India's aviation market.
In 2005, Jet overtook state-owned Indian airlines in flying the most passengers. With the acquisition of Sahara, it will also now have the largest fleet of aircraft.
Jet flew 9 million passengers last year, up 14 percent from the previous year, while Indian airlines carried 8.7 million people in 2005, up 3.5 percent on year. Sahara flew 3.5 million.
India's aviation sector has experienced robust growth in recent years after being opened up to private carriers as part of a broader government liberalization program began in the early 1990s.
The competition has brought down fares and in the process attracting more passengers. Aviation officials expect the number of fliers to grow from around the current 20 million a year to some 50 million in 2010.