Jet Airways To Buy Air Sahara

January 20, 2006 By: Susan Young Travel Agent

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Jet Airways, a major Indian airline, said Thursday that it would buy the rival Air Sahara for $500 million in cash. That would increase Jet Airways' share of the domestic market to about 50 percent. The deal was approved Thursday by the Jet Airways board and now awaits regulatory approval. The deal is the first airline takeover in India in more than a decade, and will make Jet Airways the owner of the largest Indian fleet, offering the most flights and flying the greatest number of passengers. More than a dozen airlines, many low-cost models, serve Indian markets.