Vistara gets flying permit, to announce schedule soon

Paving the way for launch of its flights, Tata-Singapore Airlines joint venture airline Vistara was on Monday granted flying permit by aviation regulator DGCA, almost nine months after it applied for the licence.

The new full-service carrier would "shortly" announce its flight schedules and open ticket bookings, an airline official said.

Vistara currently has two leased Airbus A-320s in its fleet and plans to induct three more by March next year.

The new Delhi-based airline plans to connect Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Goa, Chandigarh, Srinagar, Jammu and Patna in the first year of its operations.

"I am delighted that we have successfully cleared the final requirement and secured the AOP (Air Operator's Permit). We are thankful to the Ministry of Civil Aviation for their support and guidance during the entire process," Vistara chief executive Phee Teik Yeoh said.

Vistara chairman Prasad Menon said in a statement, "Receiving the AOP is a key milestone for Vistara... We are all looking forward to the first flight with excitement."

The airline, in which Tata Sons holds 51 per cent stake and Singapore Airlines remaining 49 per cent, plans to operate 87 flights in the first year, with five A320s and then scale it up to 301 flights by the fourth year.

Once it takes off, Vistara will be the third full service carrier after state-run Air India and Jet Airways.