Air India seeks chief executives for five units, including Air India Express

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Air India has sought applications for the CEO post in five of its units, a move that could be an important part of its divestment process.

The units are - Air India Express, Air India Engineering Services Ltd (AIESL), Air India Airports Services Ltd (AIASL), Alliance Air Aviation Ltd (AAAL) and Hotel Corporation of India (HCIL).

The Government plans to divest Air India, along with Air India Express. The low-cost arm, which was involved in the recent air crash in Kozhikode, flies to short-haul international destinations. It is at present led by Shyam Sundar Krishnamurti, who has been at the helm since 2014.

"Air India Limited is looking for Chief Executive Officer for its subsidiary, Air India Express Limited (AIXL) having its registered office in Kochi. AIXL is in the business of air transport of passenger and cargo," says the advertisement from the national carrier released on August 18.

The last day to submit applications for AIXL, and all other units is September 8. The recruitment is expected to be completed by October.

"While the CEO selection process is a usual practice, these usually don't happen together for all the units, unless the government wants to appoint their people before a merger or sale," said a senior executive from the industry.

For the third time since the process to divest national carrier Air India began in January, the government in June was forced to further push the dates because of the COVID-19 disruption.

In a notice on June 27, Ministry of Finance announced that the last day to submit the expression of interest has been extended to August 31, from June 30.

Also, now the government will intimate the 'qualified interested bidders' by September 14, from July 14 earlier.

According to reports, the Tata Group is said to be considering a bid for the national airline.