There's no denying that Air India has 99 problems, from rats on a plane to literally scrapping a brand new 787 for parts. However, if you ask me, their mascot was one of the few things that wasn't wrong with the airline. Via The Times Of India: "Air India's Maharajah, an iconic portly figure in…
Continue reading: Air India Changes Their Mascot To A Hipster Boy Taking A Selfie
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Think the PM had a decent idea but Air India's ad agency made it a dumb one. From a Maharaja to a Pimp look-a-like.
Other iterations are way more acceptable.
That reminds me, you were supposed to try out Air India first class way back in June/July. Whatever happened to that!
@ Aniket -- LifeMiles couldn't seem to ticket Air India first class at the time. 🙁
AI has bigger problems that require immediate attention, too many to mention. The mascot looks like a cheesy royalty free stock image.
The idea sounds ridiculous, image looks like clip art from MS Office. Get new management AI.
Air India should just be privatized or shut down. As an Indian government-run airline it is irrelevant in today's aviation market.
The old mascot had such a stylized body (proportions and such) that the very large mustache looked fine. The new guy has such a more realistic body that the mustache looks quite odd.
1. I would absolutely read a review of Air India F/J service.
2. I would also read a review of everything that's wrong with Air India.
3. At first I couldn't put my finger on it but Dave is absolutely correct. Even if the total area of the mustache is less the relative size seems much more absurd and incongruous. Whoever came up with this doesn't seem to have much in the way of artistic education.
Looks like there are some other changes coming soon to AI. They are planning to cut down the cost by 227 million dollars in the next financial year.
"The airline said in a statement late on Sunday that it would identify "surplus staff", freeze contractual hiring and discontinue flights which are not meeting fuel cost targets, to reduce its variable spending of Rs 14,000 crore by a tenth.
Restrictions on staff travel and hospitality have also been introduced, Air India said."
This sort of tinkering never goes well for AI. IIRC a few years back they tried to get rid of the architectural detailing around the windows and customers complained and it came back. I predict the old maharajah will be back before the end of the year. In the meantime, as people have already pointed out, AI will still be loss making, badly run and subject to government interference.
Latest Air India crew antics: the pilots get into a fight! http://mashable.com/2015/01/19/air-india-pilot-engineer-fight/
Bad clip art image. Wow. Reminds me of clients who let their nephews design their logos because they took one course in college and are now experts in creative. Why hire an expert when your dog or your nephew can do it.
@Sanjiv
Problem is not government owned, but detailed control by politicians and probably civil servants.
Singapore Airlines are majority owned by Temasek Holdings aka Sing government just as an example. Leave detail control to people who know what they do and things work much better, and you still have the benefit of increased tourism, faster travel for businesses and you still generate local jobs.