The Hindu Business Line : 38 in fray for AI chief’s post

New Delhi, Jan 22 The jockeying for the top post in Air India has begun, with the Government receiving applications from 38 candidates seeking to become the next Chairman and Managing Director of the airline. The deadline for receiving applications expired on Thursday (Jan 17).

Sources told Business Line that among those who have applied for the post are the joint Managing Director, Air India, Mr V. Trivedi; the Special Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation, Mr Raghu Menon; and Mr Amod Sharma, who is heading the recently created Special Business Unit of National Aviation Co Ltd — the new company into which Air India and Indian were merged.

The next CMD must be picked by March 31, when Mr V. Thulasidas, the current Chairman, retires from Government service on attaining superannuation.

The new CMD would be taking over at a crucial juncture asthe airline is in the process of inducting 111 new aircraft from both Airbus and Boeing, and it has lost monopoly on international operations.

Until earlier this month, Air India and its subsidiaries were the only Indian carriers allowed to operate flights between India and the Gulf. The ban was lifted this month and Jet Airways has been given permission to operate 70 flights a week from Kerala, Mumbai and Delhi to the Gulf region. Air India already competes with Jet Airways on flights to Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Nepal, the UK and the US.

Besides, AI is also currently evaluating inducting more aircraft to meet its future growth requirements.

The task of carrying together a workforce of about 33,000 personnel, as also looking after the commercial and financial welfare of the company would be the responsibility of the CMD.