An airline hijacked

Air India (AI) is in an ICU and there are strident voices demanding its demise. Governments and most people have short memories. AI in the 1950s and 1960s was one of the finest airlines in the world and mentored Singapore Airlines. It is true that after the 1970s, AI and Indian Airlines (IA) often had turbulent flight paths. But never were these airlines in the state the merged airline is in today.
In the early 1990s, IA faced rampant and endemic industrial unrest, with strikes being an annual feature. Come winter, there were fogs, strikes by employees and exits of chief executives. The airline suffered huge losses, market share plunged, passengers voted it the ‘least preferred airline’ and there was a massive exodus of pilots and engineers to private carriers.
However, within a few years there was complete industrial peace, the airline made a modest profit, there was a reverse flow of pilots, employee productivity increased and IA was declared the ‘most preferred airline’ in every survey. The marketing efforts of the airline bagged 22 awards, including two prestigious international ones, and the market share rose from 58% to 69%. What exactly happened after that to create the total mess the airline is in today?
The fault, dear friend, lies not in the skies, but in Rajiv Gandhi Bhavan. This is now official, with the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India stating that losses of the airlines were mainly due to wrong decisions regarding the purchase of aircraft, made under pressure from the ministry of civil aviation.
08/05/11 PC Sen/Hindustan Times

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Categories: Air India May 2011