That needs to be seen. Experts say that availability of slots at busy airports like Delhi has improved. Infra development at other airports might help too.

Anand Kalyanaraman

The Tata Group cannot transfer the Air India brand/logos for 5 years. After 5 years, the brand/logos can be transferred, but only to an Indian person/entity. So, the Air India brand will likely remain. It's a brand with good recall and emotional connect as the national carrier. An image makeover with improvement in operating and service standards should help the Air India brand do well, I think. Vistara has also established a good brand connect over the past few years. Will be interesting to see how the Tatas align the two.

Anand Kalyanaraman

Thanks Joy. Yes, aligning the different aircraft types will also be a challenge for Tata Sons. Together, Vistara, Air India and AirAsia India have a wide range of both wide-bodied and narrow-bodied aircraft. True, Akasa may not be able to fly international routes initially. But a rule change in 2016 from 5/20 to 0/20 should help the airline. Now, if an airline has 20 aircraft, it can start international operations. There is no need for wait for 5 years, like earlier. By the time international air travel revives fully (2 to 3 years is what many experts estimate), Akasa may be able to build its fleet size to 20. Weak international travel currently means that existing players are not really able to cash in on this avenue.

Anand Kalyanaraman

Indeed, Abhinav. It's a challenge integrating the two different business models - full service and low cost. The philosophy and the operating dynamics are different. Maybe, the Tatas will look at 2 airlines with different models - FSC (Vistara + Air India) and LCC (AirAsia India + Air India Express). Yes, the Kingfisher-Air Deccan experience should hold lessons for the Tatas about the integration challenges.

Anand Kalyanaraman

Yes, Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL), in partnership with Airbus, will manufacture the C-295 defence aircraft in India. Whether the Tatas will make civilian aircraft in India needs to be seen. Globally, the civilian aircraft market is dominated by Boeing and Airbus with other players such as Bombardier also in the ring. China is building its own civilian aircraft Comac. India too has plans; how this plays out needs to be seen.

Anand Kalyanaraman

Thank you Dharmveer. Yes, integration of the operations of the 3 airlines and brand management will be key for the Tata Group. Especially in the case of Air India. But I think it's quite unlikely the Tatas will get into aircraft manufacturing. But never say never :)

Anand Kalyanaraman

Thanks Bijou. Yes, very interesting times ahead.

Anand Kalyanaraman

Thank you, Sameer. Will write more on this :)

Anand Kalyanaraman

Thanks Payal. Not sure about a particular reason for Premji Invest's partial exit in less than 3 years after investment. The PE may be making use of a good IPO market. The total equity-plus-debt exposure of the group to the company is significant, as shown in the 'Chasing Capital' chart. The DRHP talks of a buyback from Premji Invest and Lavender Rose Investments if an IPO does not happen by 2024.

Anand Kalyanaraman

Thanks Archil. In the 'Volatile Financials' chart, the % in the top left panel shows y-o-y growth in operating revenue and net profit. In the 'Raining Discounts' chart, the Margin Game section shows the margins generally made by various intermediaries in the chain. For instance, if the MRP of a product to a customer is Rs 100, the C&F agent who gets the product from the manufacturer makes Rs 2-5, the distributor who gets the product from the C&F agent makes Rs 8-10, and pharmacies, the last leg, who get the product from the distributor make Rs 15-25. From this Rs 15-25, pharmacies usually offer discounts to customers. If pharmacies are able to source directly from the manufacturer and/or the C&F agent, bypassing the distributor and/or the C&F agent, they can probably afford to offer higher discounts to customers without making a loss on the sale.

Anand Kalyanaraman

Thanks Anas. Yes, it's a difficult transition underway in the pharmacy marketplace with market share likely to shift to the organised sector from the unorganised one. Within the organised sector, online pharmacies are carpet-bombing the consumer mindspace with aggressive advertising and discounting. MedPlus, Apollo Pharmacy and the cohort have their work cut out.

Anand Kalyanaraman

Hi Vinit, engineering service firms provide the consulting, design, development, and testing to facilitate software adoption across a range of industries such as automotive, aerospace, media, healthcare, telecom, consumer electronics, oil & gas, etc. The websites of the engineering service firms provide information on the services they provide. Hope the links below help. https://www.tataelxsi.com/# https://www.ltts.com/industry https://www.kpit.com/solutions/autonomous-driving-adas/ https://www.cyient.com/#

Anand Kalyanaraman