Air India expects first operating profit in 8 years

Air India is expected to record an operating profit of Rs.8 crore in the current fiscal, the first time in eight years for the national carrier since the erstwhile Indian Airlines merged into Air India, parliament was informed on Tuesday.

"Air India is expected to earn operating profit of Rs.8 crore as compared to the operating loss of Rs.2,636.18 crore in the previous year. This is the first time that the company is going to achieve operating profit since its merger in 2007-08," Minister of State for Civil Aviation Mahesh Sharma told Rajya Sabha in a written reply.

He said that, as per the revised estimates of 2015-16, Air India expects to "post substantial improvements", in comparision to the previous financial year.

As part of a turnaround plan stretching over nine years from 2012, the government has provided Air India assistance worth Rs.30,231 crore.

In a separate reply, Sharma said Air India provides lifetime free air travel facility to Bharat Ratna awardees and living members of the Constituent Assembly of India, among others.