The turnaround of Air India is now like the morning of the fifth day of a cricket test match, where the game is at its turning point. Campbell Wilson, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director of the Tata Group-owned airline, has given this interesting analogy of cricket to explain the current situation of the airline. Wilson has made it clear that ‘a lot of heavy lifting’ has been done in this process of change.
However, the CEO of Air India has made it clear that it may take a longer time for the airline to become profitable. The airline has been grappling with the challenge of making its operations and services world class since privatization in January 2022 and now the management believes they have entered the final stages of the process.
The journey from ‘revolution’ to ‘reform’
Speaking to the media during the inauguration of the new lounge at the Delhi airport, Wilson said the airline’s transformation is now in the phase of ‘iteration’ rather than ‘revolution’. He said that all the complex and major work related to the design and certification of the aircraft has been completed. What remains now is primarily a mechanical process. This includes the manufacturing of seats, their delivery and their installation in aircraft. Wilson stressed that there has been a huge positive change from where the airline was before to where it is today. He said the reinforcement cycle is now positive and the airline is nearing the end of the process, although it will take some time to complete the rollout.
What did the CEO say on Vihaan.AI and fleet expansion?
Air India is in the process of completely revamping its fleet, which currently consists of around 190 aircraft. In this series, the airline received its first Boeing 787-9 aircraft after privatization in January. Wilson quoted his old comment that in November 2024, when his ambitious five-year plan ‘Vihaan.AI’ completed two years, he had described it as “lunch on the third day of a Test match”. Now this journey has reached the fifth day. This year, the airline’s 20 aircraft will either be delivered with new products or refitted. Work is going on on 22 different work-streams under Vihaan.AI, which is almost on the verge of completion.
Obstacles and challenges in the path of profit
Despite all the improvements, the airline may still have a long way to go to return to profitability. According to sources, the target of achieving profitability is still three to four years away. Wilson acknowledged that ‘some unexpected events’ had had a serious impact on the airline’s financial position. In this, the tragic accident of Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner that happened in June last year, in which 260 people lost their lives, and the closure of Pakistan’s airspace have been the main reasons. Additionally, the India-Pakistan conflict, US visa barriers, tariffs and global political changes have also impacted the airline’s performance. Wilson said these challenges are real and the airline is committed to moving forward in the face of them.
