Air-India History
  • Indian Hostesses Pretty Anglo-Indian firls serve their country's leading airline. September, 1946, LIFE Magazine.
  • Air-India Operations, New London Service Popular. Coaches for road transport. Article dated 12th June 1948. 
  • Air-India International Unit at Bombay Dock for Constellations
  • Air India International. An article in Shell Aviation News, Number 239, May 1958 by K. U. Matthew. India's international airline celebrates the 10th anniversary of its inception in June 1948. An early contemporary account of the airlines early years.
  • Skeletons Dance in Tata's Cupboard. Sinister story behind Air-India Resignations. August 3, 1951, by Cross Roads Voice of India Vol. III, No. 13.
  • 20 Years of Magic Carpet Service (Air-India). Esso Air-World Volume 20, Number 6,​ January / June 1968.
  • 18th June 1971. The Indian cricket team pictured upon arrival at Heathrow Airport prior to their tour of the U.K. in brand new Air-India aircraft with captain Ajit Wadekar. By gettyimages.
  • Aviation News Volume 1 November 22. An article on Indian Aviation dated c. 1972.
  • Air-India celebrate 25 yeras of International Services, since on June 8, 1948. June 7, 1973, by FLIGHT International.
  • Airliners International (Fall 1973) salutes Air-India for using the vast dimensions of the 747, outside and inside, to convey a national motif. Well done! (courtesy John Evanich).
  • Air-India sur la piste du centaure volant. 1977, by H.P. Mama.
  • Air-India's Maharajah. Air-India enjoy the reputation of being among the world's best-run airlines. Although it has only 15 aircraft (five Jumbos and ten 707's) its reaps a harvest of profits of over Rs. 30 Crores per year. March 5, 1978, by Khushwant Singh., The Illustrated Weekly of India.
  • The Scene. Mayon Endangered, My Inflight Liberty.
  • The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft. Vol.5, Issue 54. Airlines of the Worlds Air-India. Published by Orbis Publishing Ltd dated 1982.
  • Palace Intrigues. As Air-India's chairman and managing director fight, the Maharajah's profit slump.17 - 23 July, 1988, by An Ananda Bazaar Publication (Sunday).
  • Air-India on the rebound. Rajan Jatley, Air-India's dynamic managing director, has taken a tough and successful approach towards Air-India's outdated work practices. Partial privatisation of the carrier has been recommended by a special committee, appointed by India's planning commission. October, 1989, by Interavia Aerospace Review.
  • Air India's Inaugural Flight. (nd) dadinani.com
  • Marul of a Mascot. Bobby Kooka, the wolrd's most envied mid wife gave birth to the Maharaja in 1964, Ever since, the turbaned typhoon has through Kooka's Sardonic Wit, caused a ruffle. J.R.D. would often buzz Bobby and say: "You have done it again, it government is on my back". In turn, the unputdownable Bobby wrote, "Foolishly yours" - a little book with the roar of a thousand airplane engines. February 28, 1993, by The afternoon of the Sunday.
  • Air-India in the forefront of International Aviation. Air-India reaffirms its commitment to stay in the forefront of the international aviation with the first of the four Boeing 747-400s joining its fleet this month. 1993, by A.T. Jayanthi.
  • 'He deserves a better carrier', As the Air India Maharajah turns 50 this year, Santosh Vallury talk to his creator S K (Bobby) Kooka who takes him on a quick trip down memory lane and the way it used to be. July 8-9, 1995, by The Metropolis.
  • A question of identity. A symbol that has developed a personality of his own. July 19, 1996, by Nalini Murlidhar.
  • Air India : The history of the aircraft fleet. 26 July 2004, by Sean Mendis.​
  • The long and short of brand properties. Air India Maharaja: Bobby Kooka, the man who conceived the Maharaja said, ‘He may look like royalty, but he isn’t royal’. The figure first made it’s appearance in 1946 and was later consistently used across brochures and some legendary campaigns. 21 July 2009, by Bhatnaturally.
  • Pretty girls now find their way into ads for almost anything: Bobby Kooka, Despite his rather "pucca" education-at St. Peter's, York, and the prestigious Brasenose college at Oxford, he displays a perceptive understanding of the Indian attitude to humour, and involves himself in several social service projects-protecting wildlife and beautifying Bombay among them-with a sincere dedication that makes for concrete results rather than screaming headlines. 9 March, 2015, by Vir Sanghvi.
  • Air India, the national flag carrier, is on roll, having ordered 68 new aircraft that would enable ot to launch non-stop flights from India to the USA, besides operating flgihts to cities across the globe. 2006.
  • Pretty girls now find their way into ads for almost anything: Bobby Kooka. Despite his rather "pucca" education-at St. Peter's, York, and the prestigious Brasenose college at Oxford, he displays a perceptive understanding of the Indian attitude to humour, and involves himself in several social service projects-protecting wildlife and beautifying Bombay among them-with a sincere dedication that makes for concrete results rather than screaming headlines. 9 May 2015, By Vir Sanghvi, By India Today.
  • When Air India Was Owned By Tata’s, February 4, 2016, By Al Arafat Sherfuddeen.
  • The Story of Air India’s Very First International Flight. June 8, 1998 marked the 50th anniversary of Air India’s maiden international flight – a milestone in the history of Indian civil aviation. 25 March, 2016, by Arzan, by Parsi Khabar.
  • Air India Flew Its First International Flight 68 Years Ago. Here’s All You Need To Know About It. Jun 10, 2016, by Shumali Sharma
  • 3 November 1950. On the crash of the Malabar Princess by Bryan R. Swopes.
  • Creativity in Advertising. Speech by Mr. S.K.Kooka at the World Advertising Conference, London in June 1967.
  • Time for the Maharaja to Stand Tall. Sep 17 2016 : The Economic Times (Mumbai) by Anirban Chowdhury and Mihir Mishra. Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapati Raju in his inimitable way is attempting to bring back the glory that Air India once commanded. But more interesting is the kinship that Raju, a scion of the royal family of Vizianagram, finds with the airline's iconic mascot: The Maharaja.
  • India and Her Airlines. by The Captain's Log, The Journal of the World Airline Hostorical Society, Inc. Winter 2006 - Issue 31-3.
  • AI to host rare ancient artefacts on August 15. The Museum will include, among others, ancient painting of artist such as M.F. Hussain, wooden gates of ancient temples, stone sculptures of 10-12th century, etc. January 29, 2017, by Neha LM Tripathi, Mumbai, Asian Age.
  • J.R.D. Tata Memorial Trust. Speech on the occasion of the 113th Birth Anniversary of the Mr. J.R.D. Tata. by Chairman: M.P. Mascarenhas on July 2017.
  • Yesterday's Maharajah in 'Mayday' mode. The dismal story of how Air-India, once the coutry's pride, has been virtually grounded by 'maximum government, minimum governance'. August 16, 2017, by Ashwini Phadnis, BusinessLine.
  • Here is a link to Airwhiners.net. It contains a complete list of Air-India aircraft, with registration numbers, names and more information. This is complied by Seam Mendis. Unfortunately, it mixes up both Air-India Ltd., and Air-India International Ltd. However, it is very comprehensive, and a useful reference tool.
  • A Tale Of Salvador Dali And 500 Ashtrays He Designed For Air India, April 23, 2018, by Nikita Jaiswal - Homegrown, 
  • Air-India like you've never seen before. May 14 2018: 'Revisiting the Golden Age of Travel with Air-India' With the help of private collectors and archival material, AD revisits the beauty and grace of the Maharajah Lounges and the Emperor fleet, before the titles came to an end in 1988. by Arcihtectual Digest (AD).
  • The Maharaja and his many moods, captured for posterity. The talent that the airline promoted — ranging from artists to sports people — is also captured in the manual through caricatures of paintings that adorned the inside panels and outside area of the aircraft that the airline flew. In fact, the Maharaja himself can be seen all padded up with a bat in his hand ready for a game of cricket. by 30 May, 2018, by Ashwini Phadnis, The HIndu Business Line.
  • Glitz, Glamour & Patriarchy – Inside The Lives Of Indian Air Hostesses From the ‘70s & ‘80s. by Devyani Nighoskar, dated June 6, 2018.
  • 1971 Ajit Wadekar led Indian cricket team to maiden Test series wins in West Indies and England in 1971 in his first two assignments as skipper. An Air-India in background of the photos mentioned in the article. by Hindustan Times, August 16, 2018 by Sanjjeev K Samyal.
  • When JRD Tata used to clean Air India's toilet and wiped dust off an airline counter. As chairman of Air India, JRD Tata would take personal interest in even minute issues like a dirty toilet inside the aircraft, wordings on Air India hoardings or the level to which wine was poured into a wine glass. The remarkable success story of Tata Airlines, which was later nationalised, also holds business management lessons for present day airlines which are facing losses year after year. 24 November, 2018, by Nikhil Agarwal, LiveMint.
  • Pictures Of Indian Air Hostesses From The 60s And 70s Are The Ultimate Travel Throwback. 4 August, 2019, Pradamini Kumari, by ScoopWhoop.
  • PM Inaugurates Memorial Honouring Victims of 2 Plane Crashes in France. The memorial at Nid d'Aigle, at the foot of Mount Blanc, was dedicated to Homi Bhabha and several other Indians who were among the passengers and crew of the two Air India planes that crashed in 1950 and 1966. 23 August, 2019,by NDTV.
  • The Good Old Days of Air Travel. There was a time when air travel was glamorous and with J.R.D. Tata's vision, we could have had the world's finest airlines. Unfortunately, politics took over. 22 September, 2019 by Vir Sanghvi, By HindustanTimes.
  • Luxury and Glamor of Flying on Air India in Good Old Days: A Myth to Our Next Generation. The golden age of air travel and Air India were synonymous in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. With everything from the fleet to the travel cabins to the on-board service to the inflight dining to the air hostesses having epitomized sheer luxury, Air India used to pamper travelers in the sky long before the world went gaga over the Etihad Residence and Singapore Airlines became one of the world’s best airlines. October 2019, by IndiaEagle.com.
  • Air India is in the Guinness Book of World Records. Air India entered into Guinness Book of World Records for the civil airline that had evacuated the most people till date. For the uninitiated, movie ‘Airlift’ staring Akshay Kumar and Nimrat Kaur, is based on the mass evacuation of Indians from Kuwait in the year 1990.15 November 2019, by Kairos Institute.
  • DEATH IN THE ALPS.Two planes from the same airline crashed in the same spot in the Alps, 16 years apart. Now the melting ice is releasing their secrets. Simon Akam travels to Chamonix to meet the investigator who believes the truth has been buried. December/January 2020, by Simon Akam - The Economist.
  • Air India in its glorious years. Imagine flying in a mighty plane with fuselage painted like a palace from outside and it’s cabin interiors meticulously adorned in Indian heritage themes, giving pervading sense of rich Indian heritage from the moment you enter what has been called “Your palace in the sky” and the feeling truly shown in warm Indian hospitality of the glamorous crew. 24 February 2020 by unusualescape.com.
  • Here’s Why Air India Flew 2-year-old Elephant to Geneva from Bangalore for Salvador Dali in 1967. Riding the time machine back to the golden days of Indian aviation when there were no cheap flights to or from India, we at Travel Beats, are up with a most interesting yet lesser-known story about Air India. March 2020, by IndiaEagle.com.
  • Air-India B747  in the 1970s. The founder of the Air India 747 experience back in the 1970’s, Air India could best be described as a country on wings and perhaps one of the most unique ways to fly. A flight on Air India in the 1970’s, and even the 1980’s, was special for 3 key reasons: Culture, Design & Hospitality.
  • Air India and The Maharajah Man. The creation of the Tata Airlines’ mascot is one of many short but inspiring stories in a new book, #TataStories: 40 Timeless Tales To Inspire You (2021), by Harish Bhat. The author has curated an engaging collection of stories about the Tata Group, whose history has often intersected with that of India. 12th October, 2021 by Mr Harish Bhat - www.livehistoryindia.com.
  • Special Cancellation Handstamp. Used for the 8 June 1948 Air-India International flight by Piyush Khaitan. India Post Vol.55, (2021)
  • E-magazine by 100 Knots September 2022 edition on Air India Collector - Piyush Khaitan and Vivek Matthai  
  • Air-India - On course for growth.
  • Ahead of the diamond jubilee of Air India’s maiden international journey, its last surviving crew member speaks to mid-day from Connecticut. by Nidhi Lodaya Mid-Day, 21st May 2023.
  • The Unsung Heroes of the Bandstand Air Crash, By Debasish Chakraverty, BandraBuzz, 1 January 2024.
  • The 'Centaur' logo, half man half horse was the Air-India Logo for many years. The centaur was also used by a French cargo airline in the 1960s and 1970s called Compagnie Air fret.