Saturday, June 7, 2008 (New Delhi)
In an exclusive interview with NDTV, the Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel admitted that it is time for Air India to shape up to match international standards.
In an exclusive interview with NDTV, the Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel admitted that it is time for Air India to shape up to match international standards.
He said that the airline is accountable to its customers or it will have to risk being over-run by competition.
The minister was speaking on the eve of the 60th anniversary of Air India's first international flight.Sixty years ago the Malabar princess flew from Mumbai to London, with stops at Cairo and Geneva. This was Air India's first international flight.
Now 60 years later the minister agrees that the airline needs to get its act together.
''We have world class competition beginning at our own door step in the country. It is a tough statement I make but our friends at Air India, either they perform or they perish because ultimately it is a consumer interface, it is customer satisfaction which will drive the airline not a ministerial dictate sitting in Delhi,'' Patel said. Patel said that delays in the delivery of new aircrafts by companies such as Boeing would mean that that the image makeover of the Air India would take more time than expected.
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