Campbell Wilson Steps Down as Air India Express Chairman in Major Reshuffle

In a major leadership transition at Air India Express, Chairman Campbell Wilson has stepped down from the board of the low-cost airline, marking a fresh phase in Tata Group's ongoing revamp of its aviation business. The move was communicated via an internal staff memo on Tuesday and is being seen as part of a broader strategy to bring greater operational synergy across Tata’s airline entities.

Wilson, who has served as Chairman of Air India Express since June 2022, is also the CEO of Air India. His decision to relinquish the chairmanship comes as the integration efforts between full-service Air India and its budget counterpart reach a critical stage. With much of the initial structural work now complete, the group is pivoting toward deeper commercial and operational alignment.

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Taking over from Wilson is Nipun Aggarwal, Air India’s Chief Commercial Officer. Aggarwal, who is already on the board of Air India Express, will now head the low-cost carrier while continuing in his CCO role at Air India. The dual responsibility, according to the internal note, will help drive tighter coordination across network planning, sales, and distribution.

“To ensure operational synergy between the airlines, Capt Basil Kwauk, Air India’s Chief Operations Officer, will replace me on the Air India Express Board once the necessary regulatory approvals are secured,” Wilson informed employees.
This leadership reshuffle comes more than three years after the Tata Group acquired the beleaguered national carrier Air India and its budget arm, Air India Express, from the Indian government in January 2022. Since then, the conglomerate has been steadily working to restructure, modernize, and consolidate its aviation portfolio—including the merger of Vistara with Air India.

With the leadership baton now passed, the group’s focus sharpens on optimizing fleet utilization, expanding its route network, and unlocking the full potential of its loyalty and sales platforms across brands.