Vistara CEO may be back in Singapore Airlines

Vistara CEO Vinod Kannan could return to Singapore Airlines as the Tata Group is ready to merge this full-service carrier into Air India before this year's end.

The merged Vistara AI Air India is likely to see AI's current management team in the most critical positions. However, a senior AI official said the management structure for the merged entity has yet to be finished. Among the leading players credited with Vistara's passenger-friendly image, Kannan is an SIA veteran who joined the mega southeast Asian carrier in 2001. A decade ago, Tata and SIA decided to cater a JV FSC in India, Vistara, that started flying in Jan 2015. Kannan was sent on secondment to Vistara in June 2019 when he was Scoot's chief commercial officer; before that, he was SIA VIP. "He is likely to return to Singapore Airlines now as Vistara sunsets,". "Some others on secondment from SIA in Vistara and those from other group companies could return too".

2.5 years after the Tata takeover, AI now faces increasing restrictions from passengers on several fronts, especially these two poor onboard experiences on old planes that received no upkeep during Maharaja's PSU years and a tacky on-time performance. Despite very high fares, passengers are not beginning to feel shortchanged. Vistara was seemingly the better of the two Tata Group full-service carriers strictly from a passenger perspective, and that will be gone before the year's end.

"While AI turnaround is the most challenging exercise in contemporary aviation, it has to improve quickly; otherwise, passengers will be doubly unhappy with Vistara being disbanded when AI still has a long way to go. Many people are now wondering if the medicines for curing AI of chronic illness are working. Tatas must review this as there is much at stake," said multiple AI stakeholders, including frequent flyers. About 2-3 years after it started flying, the then FSC leader in India, Jet Airways, started to decline before eventually shutting down in 2019. Vistara then emerged as the passenger-friendly airline in India.

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