Qatar Airways moot new Indian airline

Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker has revealed that along with Qatar government’s investment arm, he plans to start a domestic airline in India, since the government allows 100 per cent FDI. Qatar Airways is “joining hands” with Qatar Investment Authority and an application to launch the domestic airline in India “will be made soon.”

In June 2016, the Indian government had cleared full ownership of Indian carriers by foreign entities. While foreign carriers will be restricted to a maximum stake of 49 per cent, they are allowed to collaborate with a foreign partner, such as a sovereign wealth fund or an institutional investor, and not necessarily join up with an Indian partner for the remaining 51 per cent. Civil Aviation Secretary RN Choubey described Qatar’s move as “excellent” but added that foreign stake of over 49 per cent in a proposed airline would require government approval.

Singapore Airlines and Etihad have already invested in airlines in India (Vistara and Jet Airways respectively) with the region acknowledged as the world’s fastest growing aviation market globally for past 22 months in a row. International traffic to and from India has grown at a steady 10 per cent for many years.