Wheels set in motion for Air India's tech upgrade

The revamped board of Air India headed by chairman N Chandrasekaran is bringing business accountability to the airline that's undergoing a system overhaul under Tata ownership to save costs and improve efficiency, top officials close to the exercise told ET.

Air India's passenger services system (PSS) that includes a wide range of functions, including flight scheduling, ticket reservations, ecommerce and loyalty, has been moved to leading travel-technology company Amadeus as the existing agreement with SITA ends in June.

The move is expected to help the beleaguered airline log in savings of an estimated ₹900 crore over the next few years, officials said.


Tata Sons declined to comment on ET's queries. "There are significant cost-savings and efficiencies that will be done through technology, both by TCS and external entities," an official said.

The Tata Group has prioritised plans to make Air India financially fit, upgrade aircraft, bring in new fleet and make it the most technologically advanced airline globally. The airline will see an organisational redesign, and will "require a huge transformation" in this regard, as stated by Tata Sons chairman.

He has identified four core areas on which Air India will focus: These are providing best-in-class customer service, making it the most technologically advanced airline in the world, upgrading and modernising the fleet, and hospitality - both in-flight and off-flight.

The chairman of Tata Sons is personally monitoring the revamp and will continue to do so even after a new CEO is appointed considering the gravity of the airline's operating challenges, officials said.

Amadeus will give Air India a single platform of advanced technology to drive bookings to help agents efficiently upsell and add-sell for a better mix of high-value fares and get scale advantages, leveraging the platform's leading position in India and its agency partner network.

The new board of Air India is working on a turnaround plan. The focus will also be to promote a culture of productivity and accountability led by incentives to perform better.

"Air India did not have a tech-led analysis, pricing and booking process. It was a very manual process that impacted the commercial performance in an industry where pricing is dynamic," said an analyst. "Air India will have to put a lot of focus here through technology."

Sources told ET that the operational compliances have improved and information technology is being taken much more seriously these days.

"Major focus is on operations currently and there is more accountability for cockpit and cabin crew in the system. This has helped improve on-time performance," said an airline executive, who did not want to be named.