Air India's new CEO faces financial and safety turbulence
The aftermath of last's year deadly crash and mounting financial losses will be Gebremariam's main challenges.
Air India has appointed Tewolde Gebremariam as its new CEO, following the resignation of Campbell Wilson in April. Gebremariam, who previously led Ethiopian Airlines for over a decade, was unanimously selected by the Air India board after a thorough search. The airline, now owned by the Tata Group since 2022, has been grappling with financial losses and safety challenges, including the fatal crash in Ahmedabad-London last June that resulted in 260 deaths.
Gebremariam aims to steer Air India into a new phase of growth and global expansion. During his tenure at Ethiopian Airlines, he expanded the fleet nearly threefold and made the airline Africa's most profitable. However, Gebremariam now faces the daunting task of reversing Air India's financial woes, which have reached a record loss of nearly $2.3 billion in the latest report.
The airline has also scaled back its international operations by nearly a third. Despite these challenges, aviation experts believe Gebremariam's experience in handling crises, such as the Boeing 737 Max crash and the Covid pandemic, make him a suitable leader for Air India. His priorities will include rebuilding workplace culture, increasing employee morale, accelerating fleet expansion, and reshaping the airline's network to reduce losses.
Written by urgent.news from BBC Business's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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