‘IA-AI merger may not be smooth’

Mumbai: The merger of Indian Airlines with Air-India may not be as smooth as the Jet-Sahara merger due to issues related to the companies’ workforce. Speaking on the sidelines of the 2nd Annual India & Middle East Aviation & Tourism Investor Summit in Mumbai, Centre for Aviation Pacific (CAPA) executive chairman Peter Harbison told FE, “The merger of the two state-owned carriers pose many challenges. The two carriers have strong trade unions. They have to be tackled very carefully. They have to be made to understand that the merger is for the benefit of the carriers.”
Citing examples of airline mergers across the world, he said, “The merger of Qantas with Australian Airlines was very successful. But Air Canada and Canadian Airlines merger was not very successful.” It is too early for experts to comment if the Air-India and Indian Airlines merger will be a success. “They have no other option but to merge with each other,” he added.
28/04/06 Financial Express

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