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Economic Times
4 days ago
- Business
- Economic Times
Make Air India 'Volvo' of global airlines
Spirit in the sky In 1992, civil aviation minister Madhavrao Scindia resigned when a Russian aircraft leased by Indian Airlines crashed, despite zero casualties. An emotion-first response mechanism to disasters has historically been considered appropriate for Indian audiences, unlike the more rational SOP in the West. The tragedy of AI 171 must inspire Air India to build world-beating safety protocols, on a foundation of meaningful empathy. As per the Montreal Convention, families of perished passengers are already eligible for about ₹1.5 cr as insurance claims. Tata Sons has additionally contributed ₹1 cr, and Air India an interim of ₹25 lakh. Both chairman N Chandrasekaran and CEO Campbell Wilson have been hands-on in their commitment, while other CEOs of Tata Group are suitably aligned. In terms of emotional sincerity leading to actionable evidence, Tatas are doubtlessly delivering. They must now shift focus to hard-nosed safety considerations as a scalable service to the global flying community. According to DGCA data, India clocked 1.61 mn domestic flyers in 2024, while globally, the number was around 9.5 bn. For starters, Air India must take complete ownership over the accident inquiry, using regulatory authorities and equipment manufacturers as allies, setting a new benchmark in process and outcomes. This will ensure that it doesn't degenerate into a 'Machine vs Man' debate with allied conspiracy theories, fuelled by zealous online speculators. Safety and integrity are the Tatas' calling cards. This should lead to a continuing culture of intelligence-sharing with other airlines, pivoted on the supreme cause of passenger safety. This can be a valuable differentiator on a runway occupied by competitive nitpicking over 'softer' virtues like comfort, cuisine and an approach also makes sense in a digital search-intensive customer cohort, increasingly willing to pay a premium for 'hygiene' virtues, as proven by diverse categories like autos and wellness. 60% of Indian customers evaluate online prior to purchase, mirroring a global pattern. Air India is uniquely positioned to re-emphasise a safety-first credo to a customer base, equipped to co-create the emerging Air India Flying Training Academy at Amravati, Maharashtra, can be a vital pillar for this momentum, with the 'knowledge' resilience of the Tatas pooling in to build a leading facility. To this, one can add maintenance training and protocols, in tandem with softer but critical customer service interfaces, both physical and digital, resonating with a win-win safety and campaigns can be calibrated for in-flight customer accountability, extending to an overall 'tough love' care regime rooted in sincere empathy. In the envisioned future, Air India curated content can become globally viral for building a co-created safety culture. In the auto universe, Volvo's culture of safety is embedded in its ethos and drives a premium for prioritising human life. A 'Zero Accidents Vision', human-centric approach, and pioneering safety innovations like the 3-point seat belt (subsequently shared universally) and various other driver assistance tools have made the Swedish multinational the byword for auto safety. Global accident data is collated to ensure a safer future ride, which is further amplified by AI. This human value system is stock-in-trade for the Tatas. Adapting it proactively for Air India will lead to credible stakeholder leverage, coming from a diversified, and not just an industry, perspective. Over time, this can become a vital demonstration of Air India's intent to be a world-class airline, passenger-first on the most vital other aspects of safety, direct and extended, can be part of the airlines' agenda. The Montreal Convention, for instance, does not compensate crew members for loss of life - they are governed by employment contracts. High-rise construction near airports, endangering aircraft, is common across the world, and newer protocols must be considered. FDTL (Flight Duty Time Limitations) clearly do not consider mental health dimensions. An amendment to these may be in stringent legal provisions could deter the growing cult of unruly passengers from misbehaving. Customer-centric application of AI can smoothen the overall flying experience, from terminal management to scheduling to dietary preferences. Again, in all this, Air India can bring about a first-mover is usually a point of parity in the airline industry. It can equally become a point of valuable difference. With its time-tested pedigree, the Tatas can well make Air India the thought-to-action Volvo of global writer is an autonomous brand consultant (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this column are that of the writer. The facts and opinions expressed here do not reflect the views of Elevate your knowledge and leadership skills at a cost cheaper than your daily tea. Benchmarked with BSE 1000, this index fund will diversify your bets. But at a cost. 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Economic Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Economic Times
Tata Sons chairman tries to uplift morale as turnaround effort stalls
PTI Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekharan met the leadership team in Gurugram for a complete safety review of the airline at its headquarters in Gurgaon. Chandrasekaran who is also the chairman of the airline said that the fatal crash is the most heart breaking crisis in his career and this accident should be used to build a safer airline.A Boeing 787 aircraft crashed last week seconds after taking off, killing 241 passengers and 33 on the ground.'Aviation is a very complex business, it's a complex machine, so a lot of redundancies, checks and balances, certifications, which have been perfected over years and years. Yet this happened, so we will figure out why it happened after the investigation is complete,' Chandrasekaran said according to a recording of the speech he gave at the airline's said that he visited the Emergency Command Centre, the Integrated Operations Control Centre and the Customer Service and Support. According to the recording of the speech he said that while nothing can undo the tragedy, Air India must extend unwavering support to affected families, whom he described as part of the airline's family forever. 'Criticism is there, but it's not easy to face it especially for those of us who are very passionate, emotional and who are working on making Air India a great airline, and who genuinely care about what kind of a company we want to build. We are getting more determined,' he experts who are closely following Air India's turnaround under the ownership of Tatas, said that it will be a herculean task and the airline would need a complete overhaul of its taking over Air India in 2022, the Tatas embarked on ambitious turnaround plan, ordering a record 470 aircraft and investing crores to upgrade existing planes. The airline intends to compete against global majors like Singapore Airlines, Emirates and Lufthansa, CEO Campbell Wilson had told ET in an interview, a few days before the crash.'A lot needs to be done. They need to go back to the drawing board and see if the fast pace of expansion was stretching the safety and also improve the culture,' a consultant who worked with Air India said.A travel agent said that it will take a massive effort to win the trust of customers outside India. 'International routes are their bread and butter and we are seeing bookings being cancelled after the crash,' he said. The Air India crash is the worst civil aviation disaster by number of fatalities since 2014, when Russia-backed forces in Ukraine shot down a Malaysia Airlines flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, killing all 298 people on board, according to Aviation Safety Network.
Time of India
5 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Tata Sons chairman tries to uplift morale as turnaround effort stalls
Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekharan met the leadership team in Gurugram for a complete safety review of the airline at its headquarters in Gurgaon. Chandrasekaran who is also the chairman of the airline said that the fatal crash is the most heart breaking crisis in his career and this accident should be used to build a safer airline. A Boeing 787 aircraft crashed last week seconds after taking off, killing 241 passengers and 33 on the ground. 'Aviation is a very complex business, it's a complex machine, so a lot of redundancies, checks and balances, certifications, which have been perfected over years and years. Yet this happened, so we will figure out why it happened after the investigation is complete,' Chandrasekaran said according to a recording of the speech he gave at the airline's headquarters. Sources said that he visited the Emergency Command Centre, the Integrated Operations Control Centre and the Customer Service and Support. According to the recording of the speech he said that while nothing can undo the tragedy, Air India must extend unwavering support to affected families, whom he described as part of the airline's family forever. Live Events 'Criticism is there, but it's not easy to face it especially for those of us who are very passionate, emotional and who are working on making Air India a great airline, and who genuinely care about what kind of a company we want to build. We are getting more determined,' he said. However, experts who are closely following Air India's turnaround under the ownership of Tatas, said that it will be a herculean task and the airline would need a complete overhaul of its structure. After taking over Air India in 2022, the Tatas embarked on ambitious turnaround plan, ordering a record 470 aircraft and investing crores to upgrade existing planes. The airline intends to compete against global majors like Singapore Airlines, Emirates and Lufthansa, CEO Campbell Wilson had told ET in an interview, a few days before the crash. 'A lot needs to be done. They need to go back to the drawing board and see if the fast pace of expansion was stretching the safety and also improve the culture,' a consultant who worked with Air India said. A travel agent said that it will take a massive effort to win the trust of customers outside India. 'International routes are their bread and butter and we are seeing bookings being cancelled after the crash,' he said. The Air India crash is the worst civil aviation disaster by number of fatalities since 2014, when Russia-backed forces in Ukraine shot down a Malaysia Airlines flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, killing all 298 people on board, according to Aviation Safety Network. Economic Times WhatsApp channel )
Time of India
6 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
The Dream's Not Buried But Tatas Must Wake Up
The Dream's Not Buried But Tatas Must Wake Up Saurabh Sinha TNN Jun 15, 2025, 19:52 IST IST AI 171 crash should make airline listen much more to employees' concerns over operational issues. The group has the ability to restore AI's reputation Oct 8, 2021 | 'Tatas will have the opportunity of regaining the image and reputation it ( Air India ) enjoyed in earlier years. JRD Tata would have been overjoyed…' – Ratan Tata 's tweet on winning the bid to acquire AI alongwith AI Express. June 13, 2025 | 'In shock and mourning…for so many deaths to occur at once is of the darkest days in Tata Group's history'. Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran said a day after the AI 171 crash.
Time of India
7 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Air India plane crash: Tatas to bear medical costs of injured too
Tatas to bear medical costs of injured too Tata Group Friday reiterated its commitment to provide Rs 1 crore as compensation to families of each person killed in the AI-171 crash - including not only passengers and crew but also doctors and individuals on ground at the time of the crash. The conglomerate will also bear the full medical expenses of those injured, it said. "As stated earlier, Tata Group will provide Rs 1 crore to the families of each person who lost their lives - including passengers, crew members and individuals on the premises. Medical expenses of all those injured will also be covered while ensuring necessary care and support," a Tata Sons spokesperson said.
