Cost-cutting through Common Services Facilities: A Vision of Ex-Minister Suresh Prabhu for Airlines

Suresh Prabhu, the former Union Civil Aviation Minister, has encouraged Indian airlines to expand their fleets, while also recommending the implementation of a common services facility within the country for maintenance, repair, and overhaul works. This, he believes, would help to reduce costs. Additionally, he has suggested that Air India should capitalize on the profitable Gulf routes and restore its overseas “historical connections” that it had operated before. This would be the first order for new aircraft the airline has placed in 17 years.

Under his tenure as Civil Aviation Minister from March 2018-May 2019, Prabhu worked towards creating international aviation hubs in India, as well as a shared facility for common aviation services to help reduce costs. He aimed to achieve this by negotiating with airlines to bring Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) works back to India. His efforts helped pave the way for the Tata Group to take over the loss-making Air India in January 2022, as part of the government’s disinvestment program.

Suresh Prabhu, a BJP member who has overseen various Union ministries in the past, highlighted the difficulty of the aviation industry but nonetheless asserted that Air India should be operating at full capacity, rather than functioning at a less-than-ideal level. In a move that could potentially increase the airline’s operational capacity, Airline recently announced firm orders for 470 planes from both Airbus and Boeing. Moreover, there is the possibility to acquire an additional 370 aircraft.

Ordering aircraft was vital to move for Air India in light of the closure of Jet Airways. As Vistara is only able to partially fill the gap left by Jet Airways, the acquisition of a significant number of aircraft by Air India will be invaluable in restoring air connectivity to many Indian cities.

Indian Aviation News

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