Air India Board to Discuss Cost-Cutting Measures and CEO Succession on May 7

As headwinds persist for the loss-making Air India, its board is expected to discuss cost-saving plans, selection of the next CEO, financials, and other issues during the meeting scheduled for May 7, according to sources.

Headwinds for the Air India Group, which is projected to have incurred more than Rs 22,000 crore loss in the financial year ended March 2026, have multiplied with the West Asia conflict.

In the midst of an ambitious transformation plan, the Tata Group-owned airline is also scouting for a new CEO as incumbent and Singapore Airlines Group veteran Campbell Wilson will be stepping down later this year.

The sources said the board, chaired by Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran, will meet in Mumbai on May 7. Various cost-saving measures, CEO succession plans, financials for 2025-26 fiscal year as well as other issues are expected to be discussed during the meeting, the sources said.

As part of stringent 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, the business class passengers will have the option to choose lounge access, the sources said. They also stressed that these measures are only being mulled and a final decision has not been taken on whether to go ahead with it.

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. The board is also expected to discuss the selection of the next CEO for the airline, in which Singapore Airlines has a 25.1 per cent stake. Various names, including that of Air India and Singapore Airlines executives as well as possible European candidates, are doing the rounds for the next CEO position. One of the sources indicated that there could even be the possibility of having a joint MD or CEO.

Apart from Chandrasekaran and Wilson, Singapore Airlines CEO Goh Choon Phong and four others -- Sanjiv Mehta, Alice Vaidyan, P R Ramesh, and P B Balaji -- are members of the Air India board.

On May 1, Wilson told staff that the airspace and jet fuel price situation remains extremely challenging. He noted that the massive rise in jet fuel prices, together with airspace closures and longer flying routes, has caused many international flights to become unprofitable. While cuts in international flights happened in April and are continuing in May, Wilson indicated the airline has no choice but to further trim schedules for June and July.

According to Wilson, the profitability of domestic flights has also been significantly affected, though to a lower degree due to government limitations on domestic fuel price rises. To partially compensate for the huge spike in costs, the airline has increased airfares and imposed fuel surcharges, though Wilson noted that these higher fares impact customer demand.

On April 26, Air India, IndiGo, and SpiceJet informed the government that the industry is under extreme stress and on the verge of stopping operations, seeking financial support and a revision in jet fuel pricing. In the monthly revision on May 1, jet fuel prices for international flights were hiked by over 5 per cent.