NEW DELHI, May 6: Loss-making Air India’s board is expected to discuss financials, cost-saving measures, selection of new CEO and other issues during their meeting scheduled for Thursday.
The meeting also assumes significance against the backdrop of the Tata Group-owned airline facing significant headwinds, including higher jet fuel costs, due to the West Asia conflict.
Sources said the airline’s board meeting is scheduled to be held in the city on Thursday.
Financials for 2025-26, cost-saving measures, CEO succession plans and other issues are expected to be discussed during the meeting, they said.
Specific details about the agenda for the meeting could not be ascertained.
The airline, which is in the midst of an ambitious transformation plan, is scouting for a new CEO as incumbent and Singapore Airlines Group veteran Campbell Wilson will be stepping down later this year.
Air India board is chaired by Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran. Wilson, Singapore Airlines CEO Goh Choon Phong, Sanjiv Mehta, Alice Vaidyan, P R Ramesh, and P B Balaji are members of the board.
Airspace restrictions in the wake of the West Asia conflict have forced the airline to take longer routes for many international destinations, which is also resulting in increased fuel burn.
Meanwhile, as part of measures to save costs amid spiralling jet fuel prices, Air India is mulling unbundling meals from tickets as well as lounge access for business class travellers.
With the unbundling plan, the airline will be able to offer a different fare category where passengers do not prefer to have meals. Similarly, business class passengers will have the option to choose lounge access, sources had said.
On May 1, Wilson told staff that the airspace and jet fuel price situations remain extremely challenging.
“… massive rise in jet fuel prices which, together with airspace closures and longer flying routes, has caused many of our international flights to become unprofitable to operate,” he had said in a message.
While cuts in international flights happened in April and is continuing in May, Wilson had also said the situation leaves the airline with no choice “but to further trim schedules for June and July”.
According to him, profitability of domestic flights has also been significantly affected, but to a lower degree due to the government’s limitation of the domestic fuel price rise to 25 per cent.
“To partially compensate for the huge spike in costs, we have increased airfares and imposed fuel surcharges but, understandably, these higher airfares impact customer demand, so we can only raise fares so far before people decide to stay home,” he had said. (PTI)
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