Now Reading: Air India appoints former Ethiopian Airlines chief as CEO
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Air India appoints former Ethiopian Airlines chief as CEO
Air India has appointed Tewolde Gebremariam, the former long-time CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, as its new Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer. The Ethiopian national replaces Campbell Wilson, who resigned in April,…
The Story in Brief
Air India has appointed Tewolde Gebremariam, the former long-time CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, as its new Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer. The Ethiopian national replaces Campbell Wilson, who resigned in April, and becomes the second foreign leader of the airline since Tata Group took it over in 2022. Gebremariam led Ethiopian Airlines for over 11 years, quadrupling its revenue and nearly tripling its fleet size. He takes charge as Air India pursues its five-year Vihaan.AI transformation plan toward sustained growth and profitability.
NDTV reports that Gebremariam was earlier the preferred candidate to head Pakistan International Airlines after its privatisation. At Air India, he will oversee the delivery of nearly 600 aircraft ordered by the group and work on building world-class hub operations and MRO infrastructure.
The Indian Opinion
Celebrating a foreign CEO as a silver bullet ignores the structural hurdles Air India still faces: fierce competition from IndiGo, legacy fleet and labour issues, and India's congested airports. Gebremariam's record at Ethiopian Airlines is impressive, but Africa's aviation market differs sharply from India's. The real test will be whether he can improve on-time performance and reduce costs without government support. Watch Air India's operating margin and market share in the next two quarters for an early signal.
Sources (3): ndtv.com, rediff.com, rediff.com (2)
This story was synthesised by AI from the 3 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 3 sources.
