Air India has on-boarded more than 3,800 staff across crew and other functions and rolled out more than 29 new policies for employees in the last six months as part of the initiatives under its five-year transformation plan. It has committed over $600 million in refurbishment of aircraft and investments in new IT as it concluded the first phase of the transformation program – Vihaan.AI.
Commenting on the conclusion of the ‘taxi’ phase, Campbell Wilson, CEO & MD, Air India, said, “The first six months of our transformation journey has engaged and united Air Indians behind a common cause, and made great strides in tackling many issues that had built up over the years. During this ‘taxi’ phase, we have also come a long way in establishing foundation for growth,” he said.
He added that the record-setting aircraft order, the commitment of $400 million to completely refurbish existing aircraft, the investment of $200 million in new IT, and the recruitment of literally thousands of staff are but a few of the significant investments being made to restore Air India to the upper echelons of global aviation.
“The airline rolled out new organization structure and revamped roles across levels with a conscious effort to address the disparities between permanent and full-term contract employees. It also introduced over 29 new policies across employees to improve welfare along with two new training programs, Saksham and ACE, to upskill staff and improve service. Not only that, the airline onboarded more than 3800+ employees across crew and other functions to support capability and growth.”
‘Take off’ chapter
The conclusion of the ‘taxi’ phase also marks the beginning of Vihaan.AI’s ‘Take Off’ chapter. ‘Take Off’ is focussed on building the right platforms and progress faster based on the momentum that has been established. This phase will also witness the consolidation of the group airlines AirAsia India and Air India Express.
The LCC entity has successfully merged their core reservations platform, websites, and customer-facing systems. Vistara will also be merged with Air India following the grant of regulatory approval. The development of a world-class training academy will also take shape as also the future direction and configuration of the airline’s line and base maintenance.