‘No, Air India CEO is not an SIA nominee.' Tata Group Chairman N Chandrasekaran hits back at Praful Patel, defends Singapore Airlines
NEW DELHI: Tata Group and Air India Chairperson N Chandrasekaran on Wednesday hit back at former civil aviation minister Praful Patel who had raised questions over the culpability of Singapore Airlines (SIA) in June 12's fatal Air India Flight AI‑171 crash. The Tata top boss came out in strong defence of SIA, which is a partner of Air India, while pledging transparency and enhanced safety oversight.
On Wednesday morning, Patel in a tweet on X (formerly known as Twitter), termed SIA's public silence as 'deafening'. The former civil aviation minister pointed out that in the aftermath of the Ahmedabad crash, 'there remains a surprising silence — or perhaps ignorance — about the role of a substantial shareholder, and the entity responsible for maintaining a large number, if not all, of Air India's wide-body aircraft.'
'They seem to be in hiding'
In a no-holds-barred attack on SIA, the 68-year-old Rajya Sabha member accused the airline of playing a behind-the-scenes role in the crash that killed over 270 people in Ahmedabad on June 12 and wrote, 'They seem to be in hiding.'
'Let's not forget — they have a say in management and a codeshare agreement with Air India,' he captioned his tweet.
He categorically questioned whether 'Campbell Wilson, the CEO of Air India, is a nominee of Singapore Airlines,' implying SIA had undue influence and responsibility.
'No, Air India CEO is not an SIA nominee.'
Hours after his tweet, N Chandrasekaran, via an interview to television channel Times Now, refuted these claims. 'No, the CEO is not a nominee of Singapore Airlines. In fact, when he was hired by me, he had to quit Singapore Airlines and join Air India as an employee,' he said.
The 62-year-old Tata Group Chairman emphasised that SIA held no stake at that point, and Tata was the sole owner and only later acquired a 25 per cent share following the Vistara merger in 2022.
Campbell Wilson, #AirIndia's MD & CEO, traveled to Ahmedabad to visit the B. J. Medical College crash site and nearby treatment centers for survivors. He expressed profound sorrow and underscored the airline's full cooperation with authorities.📸 ©️Air India#AI171 #India pic.twitter.com/13MoT1ao9Y
Acknowledging SIA as a 'great partner', he mentioned that the international carrier has 'helped us in many dimensions… best‑in‑class benchmarks…and their CEO is in constant touch with me.'
He also went on to say that the aircraft in question — with new engines installed in 2023 and 2025 — was serviced jointly by Air India Engineering Services and SIA Engineering Company, categorically quashing any claims about Turkish Technic's involvement.
Air India MD & CEO Campbell Wilson on the Air India AI-171 crash, operating Ahmedabad (AMD)-London Gatwick (LGW), that had 169 Indians, 53 British nationals, 1 Canadian and seven Portuguese nationals on board.Previous post: https://t.co/zjX9Bj1aYp#aircraft https://t.co/dbjeuQi3sD pic.twitter.com/jUwm6VbAf8
Apology & pledge
Chandrasekharan, apologising for the tragedy and the loss of lives, also addressed broader concerns regarding safety, and pledged support to victims' families via an AI‑171 trust fund.
He urged that speculation should be avoided till the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau's findings, which are expected to be released in a month's time, citing that the Dreamliner had no 'red flags' and was operated by two 'exceptional' pilots with over 11,500 and 3,400 flight hours respectively.
The June 12 crash, which is among India's deadliest in decades, involved a Boeing 787‑8 Dreamliner (VT‑ANB), which veered into a college building shortly after take-off from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick, killing 241 onboard and at least 39 more on the ground.
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