Former Civil Aviation Minister and senior NCP leader Praful Patel on Wednesday hit out at Singapore Airlines – a 25.1 per cent stakeholder in Air India – over what he termed as “deafening” and “surprising silence” following the crash of Air India flight AI-171 last Thursday in Ahmedabad.
In a post on X, Patel said that Singapore Airlines – a key commercial and maintenance partner of Air India – seems to be “in hiding”, an apparent reference to the lack of a public statement from the airline in the aftermath of the crash.
Following Patel’s post, Singapore Airlines said that it has been in close contact with Air India and its owner, Tata Sons, and continues to offer its full support and necessary assistance to them.
An Air India Boeing 787-8 aircraft, operating flight AI-171 from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick, crashed moments after take-off on Thursday. The aircraft had 242 people on board; only one survived the accident. There were several casualties on the ground as well.
This is the worst aviation disaster involving an Indian airline in at least four decades, and also the first crash of Boeing’s 787 line of aircraft, which first entered service in 2011. Patel was India’s civil aviation minister when the then government-owned Air India placed orders for Boeing 787 jets.
“In all the sorrow and din surrounding the Air India 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. Guess the name: Singapore Airlines. They seem to be in hiding. Let’s not forget — they have a say in management and a codeshare agreement with Air India. Importantly, Campbell Wilson, the CEO of Air India, is a nominee of Singapore Airlines. He previously served as CEO of their low-cost subsidiary, Scoot Airlines. Why this deafening silence, SQ?” Patel posted on X. SQ is the code for Singapore Airlines, like Air India’s AI and IndiGo’s 6E.
Following Patel’s post, a Singapore Airlines spokesperson said, “The Singapore Airlines (SIA) Group extends our deepest condolences to the families and loved ones of everyone affected by the devastating Air India flight AI171 accident. We have been in close contact with our partner Tata Sons and Air India, and continue to offer our full support and all necessary assistance to them during this difficult time.”
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Singapore Airlines holds a 25.1 per cent stake in Air India as a result of the merger of Air India and Vistara. Singapore Airlines held a 49 per cent stake in Vistara, while 51 per cent was held by Tata Sons. After the Tata group acquired Air India from the government in January 2022, it was decided that Vistara would be merged into Air India, giving Singapore Airlines a fourth of the merged airline’s stake. To be sure, while Air India CEO Campbell Wilson was a Singapore Airlines group executive, he was technically not a nominee of the airline in Air India. Wilson had joined Air India in 2022, when Singapore Airlines had no direct stake in the former.
Singapore Airlines is a key strategic partner for Air India under the Tata ownership. Singapore Airlines CEO Goh Choon Phong is also on the board of Air India. Apart from other existing partnerships and synergies, Air India had in May 2024 appointed SIA Engineering Company (SIAEC) – a Singapore Airlines group company – as the strategic partner for the development of Air India’s base maintenance facilities in Bengaluru. Projected to be ready in 2026, the facilities will comprise both wide-body and narrow-body hangars, including associated repair shops, to support the growing Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) needs of the aircraft fleet in the Air India Group.
