Air India has appointed Tewolde Gebremariam – the former CEO of Ethiopian Airlines – as its new chief executive, a decision made by the airline's board after an exhaustive search. The change comes as the carrier grapples with heavy financial losses and a tragedy that claimed 260 lives on the journey from Ahmedabad to London last year.
Gebremariam succeeds Campbell Wilson, who stepped down in April and had indicated he would leave the role in 2026. Under Wilson's guidance, the airline achieved a first phase of stabilisation, integration and fleet buying – steps that Chandrasekaran, the Air India chairman, says have paved the way for a new execution and expansion era.
Air India reported a record loss of about $2.3 bn (≈£1.7 bn) in its latest month, a figure that illustrates the scale of the challenges facing the airline now under 198 aircraft serving nearly 5,000 weekly flights to 91 destinations. The company has also trimmed almost a third of its international routes and warned that a full turnaround may take up to a decade.
The airline’s woes are compounded by a string of operational setbacks. Earlier this year, a Delhi‑Vancouver flight turned around after almost eight hours due to a lack of clearance to enter Canadian airspace. The most serious incident remains the fatal crash that occurred in June, which is being investigated and through which the airline’s safety practices are being scrutinised.
Experts see Gebremariam as the stabiliser Air India needs. During his tenure at Ethiopian Airlines he steered the carrier through the 2019 Boeing 737 Max disaster, where 157 people died, and kept the company profitable through the pandemic by expanding its cargo business as passenger revenue collapsed. “Gebremariam endeared himself to his employees during both these black‑swan events, especially his backing of the pilots and engineers,” said Sanjay Lazar, CEO of Avialaz Consultants.
At Air India, Gebremariam will focus on rebuilding workplace culture, raising employee morale, speeding fleet expansion and refurbishment and reshaping the network to curb losses. The airline has not yet announced the exact date of his takeover, promising further details later.
