Tata Group-owned Air India announced a revised compensation program on Monday for its pilots and cabin crew and introduced a new rostering system. The new compensation scheme came into effect on April 1, 2023, and the trainee stipends for beginners and experienced cabin staff will be hiked by over 20 per cent. The airline will also introduce two new posts – Junior First Officer and Senior Commander.
The airline is on a massive hiring spree this year, planning to recruit 900 pilots and 4,000 cabin staff. As a part of its five-year transformation plan, the national carrier rolled out more than 29 new policies for its staff in the past six months.
Moreover, the airline plans to revamp its interiors, colour scheme, and cabin crew uniform and add a She-Maharaja as a mascot, CEO Campbell Wilson informed the staff via internal communication. In December 2022, Air India announced its USD 400-million plan to revamp the entire wide-body fleet, including 27 Boeing B787-8 and 13 B777 aircraft, and upgrade the 65 narrow-body planes with new, more comfortable seats. The first refurbished aircraft will start operating in mid-2024.
The airline has repeatedly received flak for poor seating, broken in-flight entertainment systems, and lavatories. So it engaged London-based JPA Design and Trendworks, a product design company, to revamp the interior design of the cabins. This program will help Air India surpass its international counterparts like Emirates and Singapore Airlines.
In his maiden address in February this year, Tata Sons Chairman Chandrasekaran identified four primary focus areas for Air India. These included offering the best-in-class customer service, becoming the most technologically advanced airline globally, upgrading and modernising the aircraft fleet, and improving in-flight and off-flight hospitality.
