Air India facts for kids

An Air India airplane at Narita International Airport.

Air India (AI/AIC) (Hindi: एअर इंडिया) (officially known as Air India Air Transport Services Limited) is the national airline company of India. Air India is part of the National Aviation Company of India Limited

History

Air India was founded in 1932 under the name Tata Air Line by the company Tata Sons. In 1946 the name of the company changed to Air India International. Its name changed again in 1953, this time to the current name Air India. By that time Air India was owned by the government of India. From 1999 a lot of attempts were made to merge India Air and Indian Airlines. Air India kept its name regardless of the merge.

Accidents

• 2010: Flight 812 goes beyond the runway and crashes. 160 people are killed.

Images for kids

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  Tata Air Service

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  Vintage photograph of an Air India plane

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  Tata Sons' Airline Timetable Image, summer 1935

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  Air India International 1948 stamp of India

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  Air India became the first Asian carrier to induct a jet aircraft, with the Boeing 707-420 Gauri Shankar.

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  Air India Airbus A310-300. It sold three A300s in March 2009 due to debts.

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  In January 2013, Air India cleared some of its debts by selling and leasing back the newly acquired Boeing 787 Dreamliners. Also, the airline posted its first positive EBITDA after almost six years.

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  Air India joined the Star Alliance in 2014. Pictured is Air India Boeing 787 Dreamliner (VT-ANU) in special Star Alliance livery.

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       Current destinations     Previously served countries     India

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  An Air India Boeing 747-400