Air India Statistics 2026: Fleet, Market Share, Financials and Safety
Air India occupies an unusual position in global aviation: the second largest airline in India’s domestic market, owned since 2022 by the same family conglomerate that founded it in 1932, and currently mid way through the largest fleet and brand overhaul any Indian carrier has attempted. It’s also the airline behind the deadliest aviation disaster India has seen in over a decade, a fact any honest statistical picture has to include rather than skip past.
Every figure below is checked against its original source as of August 2026. Where sources disagreed or a number couldn’t be pinned down precisely, we say so rather than picking whichever version sounded best.
- Market position: Air India Group holds 25.7% of India’s domestic passenger market (January to June 2026), second behind IndiGo’s roughly 64%.
- Fleet: Around 220 aircraft under Air India’s own certificate as of June 2026, plus over 110 more under Air India Express, its low cost subsidiary.
- Ownership: Tata Sons reacquired Air India from the Indian government on January 27, 2022, ending nearly 69 years of state control. Tata originally founded the airline in 1932.
- Financials: Air India and Air India Express posted a combined net loss of ₹22,238 crore in FY 2025 to 26, more than double the prior year’s loss, on combined revenue of ₹71,870 crore.
- Punctuality: Domestic on time performance runs 70 to 78% per DGCA data, up from sub 65% in early 2022. Globally, Cirium ranked Air India 4th for June 2026 punctuality at 86.85% on time arrivals.
- Safety: On June 12, 2025, Air India Flight 171, a Boeing 787-8, crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad. The AAIB’s preliminary report, released a month later, is covered honestly below rather than omitted.
Sources cited throughout this article. Checked August 2026.
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Ownership and History
Air India began as Tata Airlines, founded by JRD Tata in 1932. The Indian government nationalized the airline in 1953, starting nearly seven decades of state ownership and, in its later years, mounting losses.
Tata Sons won the government’s divestment bid in October 2021 and completed the acquisition on January 27, 2022, through a wholly owned subsidiary, Talace Private Limited, buying 100% of Air India and Air India Express along with a 50% stake in ground handling joint venture AISATS. It marked Air India’s return to its founding family after 69 years under government control.
In November 2024, Vistara, a joint venture Tata had run with Singapore Airlines, merged into Air India. Singapore Airlines retained a 25.1% stake in the combined airline, making it Air India’s largest minority shareholder.
Market Position
Air India Group is India’s second largest domestic carrier by passengers, holding 25.7% of the market and carrying 221.67 lakh passengers between January and June 2026. IndiGo remains dominant at roughly 64%, leaving every other carrier, including Air India, to compete for the remaining share.
DGCA domestic market share data, January to June 2026.
Fleet
Air India’s mainline fleet stood at approximately 220 aircraft as of June 2026, split between wide body and narrow body types. Air India Express, the group’s low cost carrier, operates over 110 additional aircraft separately.
The wide body fleet includes 22 Boeing 777s and 32 Boeing 787 Dreamliners, alongside a growing number of Airbus A350s. The narrow body fleet is built around the Airbus A320 family, including A320neo and A321neo variants absorbed through the Vistara merger. Air India expects six new wide body aircraft in 2026, including Boeing 787-9s and Airbus A350-1000s, plus 20 additional narrow body deliveries.
| Aircraft Type | Approximate Count | Category |
|---|---|---|
| Boeing 787 Dreamliner | 32 | Wide body |
| Boeing 777 | 22 | Wide body |
| Airbus A350 | Growing fleet, active deliveries | Wide body |
| Airbus A320neo family | Majority of narrow body fleet | Narrow body |
Air India fleet reporting, June 2026. Figures for actively delivering aircraft types change monthly.
Financial Performance
Air India Group’s finances remain under real strain despite the Tata turnaround effort. Combined revenue for Air India and Air India Express fell nearly 9% in FY 2025 to 26 to ₹71,870 crore, while the combined net loss more than doubled to ₹22,238 crore, up from ₹10,859 crore the year before.
Air India Limited alone posted revenue of ₹51,452 crore against a net loss of ₹15,368 crore. Air India Express, the smaller low cost arm, reported revenue of ₹19,088 crore and a net loss of ₹6,767 crore over the same period.
| Entity | FY 2025 to 26 Revenue | FY 2025 to 26 Net Loss |
|---|---|---|
| Air India Limited | ₹51,452 crore | ₹15,368 crore |
| Air India Express | ₹19,088 crore | ₹6,767 crore |
| Combined Group | ₹71,870 crore | ₹22,238 crore |
Reported FY 2025 to 26 results (year ended March 31, 2026). Combined loss more than doubled from ₹10,859 crore in FY 2024 to 25.
On Time Performance
Air India’s domestic punctuality has improved steadily since the Tata takeover, though it still trails the market leader. DGCA data puts Air India’s domestic on time performance in the 70 to 78% range through 2025 and 2026, up from sub 65% readings in early 2022. IndiGo leads the DGCA rankings at 80 to 85%.
On international routes, tracked separately by aviation analytics firm Cirium, Air India performed notably better: an 86.85% on time arrival rate and 86.23% on time departure rate across 15,135 tracked flights in June 2026, enough to rank 4th globally for punctuality that month.
Safety Record
On June 12, 2025, Air India Flight 171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner operating from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick, crashed shortly after takeoff. There were 242 people on board: 230 passengers, 10 cabin crew, and 2 pilots.
One passenger survived. The crash also caused fatalities on the ground, bringing the total death toll to 294.
India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau released a preliminary report on July 12, 2025, one month after the crash. It found that both engine fuel control switches moved to the cutoff position within one second of each other shortly after takeoff, causing both engines to lose thrust.
The report does not state why the switches moved or assign responsibility, and it references a 2018 US Federal Aviation Administration advisory about a potential design issue with the same switch type, which had not been made mandatory to fix at the time of the crash.
The investigation was still ongoing as of this article’s last check. We’ll update this section when a final report is published rather than speculate on a cause before investigators reach one.
Network and Workforce
Air India Limited employed 21,172 people as of August 1, 2025, with Air India Express separately employing 7,445. As of November 2025, the airline served 87 domestic and international destinations, with primary hubs at Delhi and Mumbai.
Air India Express operates as the group’s short haul, low cost arm, running more than 500 flights a day to 45 domestic and 17 international destinations from hubs in Bengaluru, Delhi, and Mumbai.
Alliance and Codeshare Network
Air India joined Star Alliance on July 11, 2014, and that membership still shapes how far a single Air India booking can reach today. Through the alliance, Air India passengers can connect to over 1,300 destinations across more than 195 countries on partner carriers, with shared frequent flyer benefits and access to over 1,000 airport lounges worldwide.
The airline also codeshares directly with Air Canada, Lufthansa, Swiss International Air Lines, and United Airlines, among other Star Alliance members. A separate agreement with Singapore Airlines, Air India’s largest minority shareholder, covers 61 points across 20 countries and territories following an October 2024 expansion that added 51 destinations across both airlines’ networks.
Loyalty Program: Maharaja Club
Air India rolled out a significant overhaul of its Maharaja Club loyalty program starting April 1, 2026, based on more than a year of member feedback. Points requirements for award flights and cabin upgrades dropped across at least 90% of Air India’s routes.
Other changes include Maharaja Points crediting within up to 2 hours of flight completion on both Air India and Star Alliance partner flights, priority services extended to one companion for Platinum and Gold tier members, and point redemption now available on Air India Express as well as mainline Air India flights.
Passenger Complaints
We want to be direct about what’s actually known here rather than imply more precision than exists. The most specific Air India only complaint figure we could verify is dated: around 1,000 complaints in a 3 month period, reported by the Minister of State for Civil Aviation in a July 2022 Rajya Sabha reply, covering refund disputes, overbooking, and staff behavior shortly after the Tata takeover began.
We could not find an equivalent, current, Air India specific complaint rate for 2026. The closest available benchmark is industry wide: DGCA data put complaints across all scheduled domestic airlines at roughly 1.09 per 10,000 passengers carried in August 2026, with a median resolution time of 19 working days and 71% of complaints resolved at the airline’s own grievance stage before escalating further.
Air India Timeline
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1932 | Founded by JRD Tata as Tata Airlines |
| 1953 | Nationalized by the Indian government |
| 2014 | Joined Star Alliance on July 11 |
| 2022 | Tata Sons reacquires Air India on January 27, ending 69 years of state ownership |
| 2024 | Vistara merges into Air India in November, Singapore Airlines retains 25.1% stake |
| 2025 | Flight 171 crashes on June 12, killing 294; AAIB preliminary report released July 12 |
| 2026 | Maharaja Club loyalty program overhaul rolled out from April 1 |
Compiled from sources cited throughout this article.
FAQ
Who owns Air India now?
Tata Sons, through its wholly owned subsidiary Talace Private Limited. Tata reacquired the airline from the Indian government on January 27, 2022, returning it to the family that originally founded it as Tata Airlines in 1932.
What is Air India’s market share in India?
25.7% of the domestic passenger market between January and June 2026, making it India’s second largest carrier behind IndiGo, which holds roughly 64%.
How many planes does Air India have?
Approximately 220 aircraft under Air India’s own fleet as of June 2026, including 22 Boeing 777s and 32 Boeing 787 Dreamliners among its wide body jets. Air India Express operates over 110 additional aircraft separately.
Is Air India profitable?
No. Air India and Air India Express posted a combined net loss of ₹22,238 crore in FY 2025 to 26, more than double the prior year’s loss, even as revenue declined. The Tata led turnaround is ongoing but has not yet reached profitability.
Is Air India on time most of the time?
On domestic routes, Air India’s on time performance runs 70 to 78% per DGCA data, behind market leader IndiGo. On international routes, Cirium data showed a stronger 86.85% on time arrival rate in June 2026, ranking Air India 4th globally that month.
What happened with the Air India crash in 2025?
On June 12, 2025, Air India Flight 171 crashed shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad, killing 294 people including one person on the ground. India’s AAIB released a preliminary report on July 12, 2025, finding both engine fuel control switches moved to cutoff within one second of takeoff. The investigation into why remains ongoing.
Is Air India part of a global airline alliance?
Yes, Air India joined Star Alliance on July 11, 2014, giving passengers access to over 1,300 destinations across more than 195 countries through partner airlines. It also has a direct codeshare agreement with Singapore Airlines covering 61 points in 20 countries.
What changed in the Maharaja Club loyalty program in 2026?
Starting April 1, 2026, Air India reduced points requirements for award flights and upgrades across at least 90% of its routes, sped up points crediting to within 2 hours of flight completion, and extended redemption to Air India Express flights as well as mainline Air India.
