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Cash-strapped Air India should be run by professionals even if the government partially off-loads its stake to investors to keep it off-the-ground, a top global aviation professional has said.
“The government has to recognise that if it is to privatise Air India, then it has to leave the management of Air India and not interfere with it,” Tony Tyler, the director general and chief executive officer of International Air Transport Association (IATA), said in Geneva. Talking to PTI at IATA headquarters here, the chief of the global airlines’ body flayed political interference in the functioning of an airline, saying the government-owned airlines have generally performed well when run by professionals.
Meanwhile, Air India on Sunday took the delivery of its 18th Dreamliner aircraft from US manufacturer Boeing with which it plans to scale up its Birmingham operations.
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Asked about privatisation of state-owned carriers the world over, Tyler said when it is a government-owned airline it is the government's prerogative to run it and even then, "I believe it should be left to the professional managers to manage it."
"But when you sell it and a private investor is there then you must leave the management to manage it and be controlled by the individuals and not the government."
Criticising political interference in the functioning of an airline, Tyler said an airline should be run on commercial lines if it is to take on competition.
"If it is to be run, then that should done only as a commercial entity because your competitors are (functioning) on commercial lines. The government then is there as an investor and not a manager. When politicians start to take management decisions, you have problems.
