Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations (USD $) In Thousands, except Per Share data, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2012	Jun. 30, 2011
Income Statement [Abstract]
Sales and other operating revenues	$ 357,770	$ 361,564
Cost of goods and services sold	316,207	305,316
Gross profit	41,563	56,248
Selling, general and administrative expenses	36,094	34,955
Other income (expense)	(190)	3,230
Restructuring charges	0	769
Operating income	5,279	23,754
Interest expense	27,115	25,776
Interest income	998	1,491
Income (loss) before income taxes and other items	(20,838)	(531)
Income tax expense (benefit)	9,239	(1,881)
Equity in net loss of investee companies	(195)	0
Net income (loss)	(30,272)	1,350
Less: Net income attributable to noncontrolling interests	471	29
Net income (loss) attributable to Alliance One International, Inc.	$ (30,743)	$ 1,321
Earnings (loss) per share:
Basic (usd per share)	$ (0.35)	$ 0.02
Diluted (usd per share)	$ (0.35)	$ 0.02
Weighted average number of shares outstanding [Abstract]
Basic (in shares)	87,192	86,812
Diluted (in shares)	87,192	110,082