Akasa Air Plans IPO in 2–5 Years, to Resume Pilot Hiring in 2026

The chief executive of India's Akasa Air stated on 29 October that the airline intends to resume hiring pilots in the second half of next year with the goal of becoming public within the next two to five years. Making a loss Due to delayed deliveries from Boeing, which was under regulatory inspection and in the aftermath of a seven-week workers' strike, Akasa, the third-largest airline in India, has not had enough work for pilots.

According to Reuters, the airline's leadership have privately voiced their displeasure with Boeing's delays. Without giving specifics, Akasa CEO Vinay Dube told Reuters on the fringes of an Aviation India event that all of the company's pilots will begin accruing hours—that is, time spent in the cockpit—within the next 60 days.

Akasa Not To Raise Capital Ahead of IPO

After raising an undisclosed amount earlier this year, the CEO went on to say he did not see the need to seek money before an IPO. "Our next phase should be an IPO in a two to five year time horizon," he said in response to a question regarding the airline's future intentions.

He didn't specify where the business intended to list. Dube also denied rumours that delays in jet deliveries were causing Akasa's growth plans to go behind schedule. "The fact that we have thirty aircraft makes me very happy. "Today is exactly where we should have been," he said to the crowd. He would not disclose how many aeroplanes Akasa anticipated receiving overall this year and in the years to come. According to Reuters, Akasa's executives have previously predicted that the airline will have about 54 aircraft by October 2026.

IPO Getting Popular Among Companies Operating in India

With its expanding initial public offering (IPO) market unabated by trade tariffs or international uncertainty, India's insatiable thirst for stock market investing has prompted a fundraising gold rush in Asia's third-largest economy. Large corporations have raised record-breaking sums of money this week by offering their shares to investors through initial public offerings (IPOs), ranging from the global co-working firm WeWork India to the South Korean conglomerate LG Electronics' India unit to the financial services behemoth Tata Capital.

IPOs are used by privately owned companies to sell their shares to investors for the first time and make their public market debut, in contrast to secondary markets, where investors purchase and sell already-issued stocks of corporations. According to investment bank Kotak Mahindra Capital Company, 79 companies made $11.5 billion (£8.58 billion) in the first nine months of 2025.

A series of other issues in the last three months of the year are anticipated to generate an additional $10–11 billion, bringing the total value of India's IPO market to over $20 billion this year. Additionally, this does not include the funds raised by small and medium-sized businesses in India. The IPO market is being used by businesses from a variety of industries, such as retail, infrastructure, healthcare, e-commerce giants, and new-age digital companies.