Air India CEO Tewolde Gebremariam will have to handle airline's many challenges

NEW DELHI: Air India, owned by the Tata Group and Singapore Airlines, has named Tewolde Gebremariam as its new CEO at a time when the Indian carrier faces a host of challenges, from record losses to safety lapses that have drawn intense regulatory scrutiny.

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Below are the main challenges facing the former Ethiopian Airlines CEO:

SAFETY AND COMPLIANCE

The crash of an Air India Boeing 787 in Ahmedabad in June ‌2025, which killed ⁠260 people, ⁠has intensified scrutiny of the airline's operations and safety culture.

Indian regulators have reprimanded Air India for lapses including ​operating an Airbus A320 on multiple flights without a valid airworthiness review certificate and failing to conduct required ​checks of emergency equipment, Reuters has reported. The airline acknowledged in December that it needed urgent improvements in process discipline, communication and compliance culture.

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STEMMING RECORD LOSSES

Air India Group recorded losses ​of over $2 billion in fiscal year 2025-26 ended March, compared ⁠with a ‌loss of about $1.13 billion a year earlier.

The airline has not reported a ​profit since its ​return to private ownership in 2022. Singapore Airlines' (SIA) auditor flagged indicators ⁠that its investment in the carrier may be impaired because of ​difficult operating conditions and geopolitical uncertainty, though SIA said a formal ​assessment concluded no write-down was warranted.

GEOPOLITICAL DISRUPTION AND AN UNPROFITABLE NETWORK

Pakistan's ban on Indian airlines using its airspace since April 2025, followed by war in the Middle East, has forced Air India to operate longer routes, cancel flights and scale back some of its most important international services. The disruption has allowed foreign carriers to expand.

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MODERNISING THE FLEET

Air India inherited an ‌ageing fleet and outdated cabins after years of decay under state ownership. Its programme to refurbish aircraft interiors has been delayed by shortages of seats, ​components and ​other supplies. The airline has ⁠completed the cabin retrofit of all 27 of its legacy Airbus A320neos and is upgrading its widebody fleet.

Air India has more than 500 aircraft on order. Reuters reported in June that ​it was seeking to defer deliveries of hundreds of Airbus and Boeing jets as Tata pushed the airline to cut costs and reduce record losses.

Under Campbell Wilson, Tewolde's predecessor, Tata consolidated its aviation businesses by merging Vistara into Air India and combining its low-cost carriers under Air India Express. Tata Sons Chairman N. Chandrasekaran has described the airline as entering a "critical execution and expansion era."