Castles in the Air India

For the shitty condition that Air India is in at the moment, not many would know that it has a unique history. It all began in 1932 with JRD Tata flying a plane from Karachi to Bombay. Called Tata Airlines, the whole company consisted of two planes, a pilot, and two mechanics.

After Independance, the Indian government bought a majority stake in the Airlines, and it became Air India. By then, JRD should have said Tata to all his dreams of a world-class airliner. The condition it is in, and the reasons for it being in the news these days, are tragic to the extent of being comical.

In April 2007, Air India hired 186 foreign pilots. There are only 36 of them left, and one of them left because he one day walked into the cockpit, to find that the pilots had put newspapers on the windows to block extra light from coming into the cockpit. In February this year, a senior ‘flight inspector’ was suspended for being drunk while on duty. In 2010, one of the pilots was going to the washroom and left the plane in the hands of the co-pilot. While adjusting his seat, the co-pilot knocked off the controls, and the plane sank 7000 feet into the ground, and then was rescued by the pilot.

Here’s the bit that is not funny. In May 2010, a plane crashed in Mangalore, killing 158 people. Since the 2007 merger between Air India and Indian Airlines, it has been a Godawful mess. While airlines have been taking a beating worldwide, Air India is suffering from its worst phase in its 79 year old history. Losses of more than 7,000 crores expected in this year, strikes by pilots causing losses of 100 crores a week, more than 100 flights – most of them international routes – grounded due to the issues not being sorted out. That’s why I laughed when Vijay Mallya asked the government to bail out Kingfisher Airlines. The government can’t manage their own airlines. Ghanta, they’ll bail you out, brada!

The common logic that everything the government owns by default sucks, is not always true. Airlines of other countries, take Singapore Airlines, is among the best in the world. When Indonesia’s state controlled airlines, ‘Garuda’ was in a deep mess, experts from the aviation industry were called in to stem the rot. But then, this is India, man. Who gives a fuck?

In an industry where customer service is of prime importance and customer is king, the mascot of Air India himself is called Maharaja! When Gustav Baldauf, an Austrian with 25 years was made the Chief Operating Officer of the sick airlines, many eyebrows were raised. In an interview to a newspaper, he complained against too much government interference, and within months, he was served a notice for ‘indiscipline’ and fired. His crime? He had suggested that industry professionals be given top positions to revive the fortunes of the airlines.

In the present system, the Airlines is headed by an officer from the Indian Administrative Service. It baffles me how someone who has cleared an examination could be at the helm of a company that requires decades of experience. To top it all, the airline is a victim to our touring mantris. Like our Honourable President, who spent a cool 205 crores on foreign tours. When criticised for taking her family and relatives on the tours, Ms. Patil said that it is the ‘duty of all the citizens to respect the post of the President.’

Which brings us to the important question, does the government still need to run a state-controlled airline in today’s age? In an interview with Karan Thapar last week, the Aviation Minister Ajit Singh himself agreed that the age of state owned airlines is gone. Immediately after that, in the unfathomable way that only a minister can speak, he ruled out any chance of privatisation of the company.

According to an article by Tehelka, the percentage of Indians who use airlines is 2%. 50% of Indian air traffic is between Mumbai and Delhi. It is not as if the whole country is going to choke and die if the government deregulates the airlines.

Why then, is there this stubbornness to consider privatisation? Unless some drastic steps are taken, the airline is going to bleed itself to death anyway. What is the point of a bailout, where the government has to work to pay off the 40,000 crores of debt that the airline is reeling under? In a country where basics like education, healthcare, and infrastructure are in a pitiable condition, what is the need to pump so much money into a company, that has only a 17% market share in the industry, which is used by less than 2% of the country’s population?

The telecom industry has shown that privatisation in the Indian markets is not necessarily a bad thing, as the Indian consumer is always looking for better services at cheaper prices. But then, there is always the question of the babu. The babu flies in the Air India. How will the babu take any steps against it?

The Maharaja meanwhile, much like the airline, continues to stand with his hand on his chest, and his head bowed. Ready to serve. Ready to bow.