New Delhi, July 28 -- Ever wonder what it's like to run a business empire spanning salt to semiconductors, and still have the airline business dominate every headline? That's the story emerging from Tata Sons Pvt. Ltd.'s latest annual report.

Start with the number that stings most. Tata Sons' 16 privately held businesses saw combined loss nearly double to Rs.27,854 crore in FY26, with Air India accounting for 80% of it. The airline's loss more than doubled to Rs.22,238 crore-the highest ever in a fiscal due to the plane crash in Ahmedabad, airspace closures and surge in fuel costs due to the West Asia crisis. Revenue actually fell 9% to Rs.71,870 crore.

Tata Sons Chairman Natarajan Chandrasekaran has now told shareholders that fixing Ai...