State-owned airlines in India to merge

The BBC is reporting that India's two main state-owned airlines will soon merge. The two carriers, Air India and Indian Airlines, will become one by April of this year. From the BBC article:

The Indian government hopes that the combined firm will become one of the world's top 20 airlines.

"Everybody feels the process of merger is appropriate," said Praful Patel, India's civil aviation minister.

Set up in 1932, Air India is the country's flagship airline, serving more than 40 destinations worldwide.

Indian Airlines is focused on the domestic market.

Air travel has been growing rapidly in India as income levels rise and long-established players such as Air India and Indian Airlines have been challenged by more recent entrants.

There are now four budget airlines operating in India.

Speaking of India, the aviation industry in that country is booming. This is not just my opinion. An article on the DNA India website also quotes India's civil aviation minister Prafel Patel, who said that aviation is going to be "the next big thing" in India.

With the boom in the aviation industry and increasing number of private airlines, this is going to be the industry which will be a big draw for the youth.

For a glimpse of the kinds of aviation jobs that Air India is seeking to fill, have a look at the Present Vacancies page on the Air India website. Looks like they're aggressively hiring pilots, as well as technical personnel.

Just last month I wrote about the shortage of pilots in India in one of my other blogs. FYI, foreign pilots can be licensed to fly in India once they pass an examination conducted by the directorate general of civil aviation.