Mumbai: Tata Sons on Thursday appointed Campbell Wilson as CEO and managing director of Air India. Wilson headed Singapore Airlines’ budget carrier Scoot prior to joining the Indian carrier.
The Air India board approved the appointment subject to requisite regulatory approvals, the group said in a statement.
Commenting on the appointment, Air India chairman N Chandrasekaran said, “I am delighted to welcome Campbell to Air India. He is an industry veteran having worked in key global markets cutting across multiple functions. Further, Air India would benefit from his added experience of having built an airline brand in Asia. I look forward to working with him in building a world-class airline.”
Wilson has 26 years of aviation industry expertise across both full service and low-cost airlines. Having started off as a management trainee with Singapore Airlines (SIA) in New Zealand in 1996, Wilson then worked for SIA in Canada, Hong Kong and Japan before returning to Singapore in 2011 as the founding CEO of Scoot, which he led until 2016.
He further served as the senior vice president sales and marketing of the airline, before returning for a second stint as the CEO of Scoot in April 2020. Wilson holds a master of commerce degree in business administration from the University of Canterbury in New Zealand.
Speaking on his appointment, Wilson said, “It is an honour to be selected to lead the iconic Air India and be a part of the highly respected Tata Group. Air India is at the cusp of an exciting journey to become one of the best airlines in the world, offering world-class products and services with a distinct customer experience that reflects Indian warmth and hospitality. I am excited to join Air India and Tata colleagues in the mission of realising that ambition.”
Earlier in March this year, Tata Sons had announced the appointment of former chairman of Turkish Airlines Ilker Ayci for the same post. However, Ayci had declined the post amid controversies over his political views pertaining to the Indian sub-continent.
The Tata Group took back the management and control of Air India in January this year, after completing the beleaguered airline’s purchase back from the government of India. In a homecoming for the homegrown airline, Air India was handed back to its founders which began operations as Tata Air Services in 1932, before being nationalised.
