Air India sets up interim management committee amid CEO delay

Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran is setting up an interim management committee to run Air India as the appointment of a new CEO is expected to be delayed by a few months.

The delay comes amid opposition from several quarters, including Tata Trusts chairman Noel Tata, to the proposed appointment of Nipun Aggarwal as the airline's next CEO, succeeding Campbell Wilson, who's leaving.

The interim management committee will comprise Chandrasekaran, former Air India CMD Pradeep Singh Kharola and other senior executives. While Wilson is due to leave in September, an informal search will continue for the airline's next chief executive, people familiar with the matter said.


Despite the concerns, Aggarwal remains a strong contender for the CEO role. He has been Air India's chief commercial officer since 2022, overseeing commercial operations, including fleet expansion, sales, marketing and network planning. Aggarwal previously held senior roles at Tata Sons, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Standard Chartered Bank and BP.

Tata Sons did not comment.

Executives said Kharola had been brought in to help streamline operations and improve execution, while Chandrasekaran will focus on instilling greater operational rigour, tightening quality control and accelerating the airline's return to profitability, said the people cited. Kharola is also expected to take a tough stance on operational lapses arising from negligence and fleet quality, they added.

"An airline is a people-centric business, whether it is employees, cabin crew or customers," said one of the executives cited.

Kharola was appointed executive adviser to Chandrasekaran in June as the Tata group-owned airline strengthened its leadership ahead of the management transition.

"This is not an election where popularity is the deciding factor. The person chosen has to be capable of fixing the issues confronting the airline," said one of the executives.

Chandrasekaran has stepped in to conduct weekly reviews of Air India as it grapples with a challenging business environment amid uncertainty at the top following Wilson's resignation. Chandrasekaran has been pushing for closer coordination among various departments. Key units such as flight operations, commercial and finance have been asked to deliver weekly reports to him, said people aware of the development.

Air India has also been the subject of intense discussions at recent Tata Sons board meetings with Noel Tata raising the matter of increasing losses.

According to co-owner Singapore Airlines' FY26 annual report, Air India's revenue more than doubled to S$10.53 billion (Rs 77,800 crore) from S$4.55 billion (Rs 33,600 crore) a year earlier, reflecting the consolidation of Vistara after the merger completed in November 2024. However, losses after tax widened to S$3.77 billion (Rs 27,800 crore) from S$288.4 million (Rs 2,130 crore) in the previous year.

That has forced Tata Group and SIA to pump more cash into Air India. Tata owns 74.9% of the carrier, which was privatised in 2022, while SIA has 25.1%.

The airline has cut over 350 daily flights as it was badly hit by the soaring prices of jet fuel after the war in West Asia. Its Europe and North America-bound flights have to take longer routes, sharply increasing fuel consumption and crew costs, because of the closure of Pakistani airspace.

The Tata Sons board is currently reviewing Air India's aircraft delivery pipeline, though any deferment in the near term is unlikely as this will attract a penalty from manufacturers. The airline will take delivery of seven more wide-body aircraft in FY27 while its budget arm Air India Express will induct around 10 Boeing 737 Max planes.

Singapore Airlines said in its annual report that Air India continues to face industry-wide supply chain disruptions that have delayed aircraft deliveries and cabin retrofits, besides elevated fuel prices and India-specific challenges such as the closure of Pakistani airspace and constraints on services to key Gulf markets.