MUMBAI, Oct 1 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Tata is clambering back into the cockpit of Air India, the airline it founded and then lost to nationalisation in 1953. According to the ANI news agency and others, the storied conglomerate led by Natarajan Chandrasekaran appears to have beaten SpiceJet (SPJT.NS) owner Ajay Singh in the race for the national carrier read more . It’s a landmark moment for buyer and seller. Successful privatisation would secure big reform miles for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, underscoring his seriousness about selling underperforming state assets. Most of the modest proceeds will pay down the airline’s debt: accumulated losses exceed $9 billion. Tata will probably merge its purchase with its interests in AirAsia India and Vistara, a 51%-owned joint venture with Singapore Airlines (SIAL.SI). It may even work out as a decent investment. Remarkably, shareholder returns at market leader IndiGo, owned by $10 billion Interglobe Aviation (INGL.NS), have kept pace with the broader Nifty 50 Index since early 2020, despite pandemic pains. Of course, neither comes close to returns from $190 billion outsourcing giant Tata Consultancy Services (TCS.NS). That benchmark will continue to dominate Tata’s own skies. (By Una Galani) On Twitter http://twitter.com/breakingviews Capital Calls - More concise insights on global finance: Swedish tech M&A machine risks sputtering read more Gene sequencing IPO puts some life into London read more Climate change’s grey area gets overdue focus read more Aramco vote tests Mukesh Ambani’s power read more Mediobanca rebel dresses up in ESG colours read more