Tata Sons has embarked on a strategy to consolidate the workspaces of its carriers Air India, Air India Express, and AirAsia India, relocating them to a single common office by March 2023, Air India has outlined in a statement. The flag carrier has also unveiled what it calls a transformation plan that will enable it to increase its domestic market share by over 30% in the next five years.

The flag carrier said the move is “an integral part of its transformation agenda” and comes as owner Tata strives to bring the three carriers’ operations closer together while grappling with their accumulated losses.

According to the plan, by early 2023 there will be an office for the three airlines at the Vatika One on One corporate campus in Gurugram, a city about 25 kilometres southwest of central New Delhi known as a financial and technology hub. Delhi International lies midway between Gurugram and the Indian capital. The fourth carrier in the conglomerate’s stable, Vistara, is currently headquartered in the vicinity, about 10 kilometres from Vatika One on One at another complex, Intellion Edge.

Air India has already started to vacate a number of offices housed in government premises across the country. The biggest of these, at Airlines House by Delhi Safdarjung Airport, will move to an interim space in Gurugram before relocating to Vatika early next year.

“The consolidation of workspaces is being undertaken to improve collaboration, strengthen the organisation’s culture, upgrade employees’ work environment and facilities, and more easily deploy new technology,” Air India explained in the release, dated September 9.

“The airline’s regionalised organisation structure will be progressively disbanded and replaced with a centralised one. This will allow for the consolidation of presently-dispersed teams, the co-location of managers with their teams, and the physical adjacency of related functions. The move will be accompanied by greater focus on team and culture building together with efforts to enhance accountability and result orientation.”

In related news, Air India announced a new “comprehensive transformation plan” on September 15 that includes changes and improvements to customer service, technology, product, reliability, and hospitality. Titled Vihaan.AI, which in Sanskrit alludes to the dawning of a new era, objectives include:

  • an immediate focus on fixing basics (Taxiing Phase) and then becoming a global leader (Take Off & Climb)
  • striving for at least 30% domestic market share, from 8% now, and a bigger international network
  • initiatives such as refurbishing cabins with new seating and inflight entertainment system
  • adopting proactive maintenance and refining flight schedules to enhance on-time stats
  • fleet expansion to involve both narrowbodies and widebodies

“Vihaan.AI has been developed after extensive feedback from Air India employees on their aspirations and hopes for the airline’s growth,” the carrier claimed in a statement.

As previously reported, Air India said this week it had signed lease contracts covering thirty aircraft - five B777-200(LR)s and twenty-five A320neo Family narrowbodies - with deliveries scheduled for 2022 and 2023.