Air India eyes 30% international market share in 5 years: CEO

A hub in Southern India is logical: CEO Campbell Wilson

Air India (AI) aims to grow its share of international passengers to and from India from the current 12% to 30% over the next five years, its CEO Campbell Wilson said on Tuesday.

To support this international growth, the carrier could add a hub, including one located in South India, Mr. Wilson told the media.

The airline aims to reclaim its presence globally, and Mr. Wilson explained how Air India plans to achieve it. “India’s network has not always been purely commercially driven,” he said.

“It has been, perhaps, driven by the location of the diaspora, which is not wrong. But we can appeal to a lot more... [such as] the pure international traveller, the sort that flies Emirates, Qatar and Singapore Airlines and others, which will allow us to broaden our footprint.”

Mr. Wilson added that India had an advantage due to its geography from a connectivity point of view as well as both a large local population and diaspora, while most global airlines either had a strong home market or connectivity.