By Megan Cheah
Air India Chief Executive Campbell Wilson is stepping down, the latest setback for India's flag carrier as it grapples with continuing losses following a deadly crash last year.
The resignation is the second major leadership change at a leading Indian airline this year as the industry faces headwinds from a surge in fuel costs driven by the Middle East conflict, forcing carriers to reduce or suspend flights to the region. Last month, Pieter Elbers stepped down as CEO of IndiGo.
Air India's board has formed a committee to find Wilson's successor in the coming months. He will remain in the role until a replacement is on board.
The airline said Tuesday that its CEO told Air India Chairman N. Chandrasekaran in 2024 that he wanted to step down in 2026 and that he had been working to ensure the organization was on "a stable footing for the transition."
"The time is right for me to hand over the reins for the next phase of Air India's rise," Wilson said.
Wilson, a veteran of Singapore Airlines' budget carrier Scoot, was brought in as Air India's CEO after the company was taken private by Tata Sons, linked to one of India's largest conglomerates.
India's oldest airline made headlines last June when its Boeing 787-8 passenger jet carrying 242 people bound for London crashed into a residential area shortly after takeoff from an airport in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad. In all, 260 people died, including 19 on the ground. The cause of the crash is still under investigation.
The carrier said separately on Tuesday that it plans to revise its fuel surcharge amid a sharp rise in global jet-fuel prices. It switched its domestic-route surcharge from a flat fee to a distance-based grid, while making more significant changes to its international flight routes.
The surcharges on international routes don't compensate for the jump in jet-fuel prices, and the company continues to absorb a significant share of the increased cost, it said.
The Indian carrier, which is partly owned by Singapore Airlines, is expected to post wider losses amid limited fuel hedging and significant cuts to Middle East routes, CGS International analyst Raymond Yap said in a recent note.
Write to Megan Cheah at megan.cheah@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 07, 2026 06:37 ET (10:37 GMT)
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