根据熟悉情况的人士透露，印度有限公司（India Ltd.）的新任首席执行官特沃尔德·格布雷马里亚姆（Tewolde Gebremariam）正在讨论降低该航空公司A350机队维护成本的方案，以期在全公司范围内实现节约。
India Ltd.’s new Chief Executive Officer Tewolde Gebremariam is discussing ways to reduce the cost of maintaining the carrier’s A350 fleet as he seeks savings across the airline, according to people familiar with the matter.
印度航空公司（Air India）在飞往美国和欧洲的关键航线上运营着六架空客（Airbus SE）A350-900飞机，这些飞机由罗尔斯-罗伊斯控股公司（Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc）的Trent XWB发动机提供动力。该公司在2023年下达了创纪录的80台Trent XWB发动机订单，并额外选择了20台的选购权。
Air India operates six Airbus SE 350-900 aircraft — powered by Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc’s Trent XWB engines — on key routes to the US and Europe. The carrier in 2023 placed a record order for 80 Trent XWB engines, along with options for 20 more.
上个月刚刚接手这家亏损航空公司的特沃尔德表示，他对运行和维护这些发动机的成本高于预期表示担忧，熟悉情况的人士如是说。由于讨论属私密，这些人士要求不具名。印度航空公司使用空客飞行小时服务（Airbus Flight Hour Services），并选择了罗尔斯-罗伊斯的TotalCare维修计划，已与服务提供商进行了初步讨论，人士透露。
Tewolde, who took the helm of the loss-making airline last month, has raised concerns over the higher-than-expected cost of running and maintaining the engines, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the discussions are private. Air India, which uses Airbus Flight Hour Services and opted for Rolls-Royce’s TotalCare maintenance program, has held initial discussions with service providers, the people said.
维修成本高于签订协议时的预期，这一点也已向相关公司反馈，他们表示。
Maintenance costs are higher than anticipated when the deals were signed and that has been flagged to the companies too, they said.
特沃尔德此前是埃塞俄比亚航空集团（Ethiopian Airlines Group）的首席执行官，如今正致力于扭转印度航空的业绩。该公司去财政年度录得超过2200亿卢比（约23亿美元）的创纪录年度亏损，目前正寻求从其所有者塔塔私人有限公司（Tata Sons Pvt.）和新加坡航空有限公司（Singapore Airlines Ltd.）那里获得1000亿卢比的资金支持，而这两家公司目前也因考虑增加支持而受到审查。印度航空、空客和罗尔斯-罗伊斯的代表未回复电子邮件查询。
The focus on costs comes as Tewolde, the former CEO of Ethiopian Airlines Group, seeks to turn around Air India’s fortunes. The carrier posted a record annual loss of more than 220 billion rupees ($2.3 billion) last fiscal year, and is seeking 100 billion rupees in funding from its owners Tata Sons Pvt. and Singapore Airlines Ltd., which are both facing scrutiny over tipping in more support. Representatives for Air India, Airbus and Rolls Royce did not respond to emailed queries.
熟悉情况的人士此前在9月透露，特沃尔德正致力于提升印度航空的货运业务，该业务目前平均仅使用了约35%的货舱容量。他还告诉员工，希望他们开始制定减少维修问题的计划，尤其是考虑到该航空公司机队并不算老旧。印度民航局去年曾表示，该航空公司的安全相关问题多于竞争对手。
Tewolde is seeking to bolster Air India’s cargo business, which uses only around 35% of its capacity on average, people familiar said earlier in September. He has also told staff that he wants them to start working on a plan to reduce maintenance issues, especially given the airline’s fleet isn’t very old. India’s aviation regulator said last year that the airline had more safety-related issues than rivals.
Tewolde 还在考虑将预算航空公司印度快捷航空并入主集团。
Tewolde is also considering folding budget carrier Air India Express into the main group.
减少亏损也是大股东塔塔集团的关键诉求，塔塔集团目前卷入围绕主席Natarajan Chandrasekaran任期的权力斗争，并面临监管层推动上市的压力。作为咖啡到汽车 conglomerate 的母公司，塔塔集团已指示航空公司放缓扩张步伐并进行整合。
Reducing losses is also a key demand by majority owner, Tata Sons, which is embroiled in a power struggle over Chairman Natarajan Chandrasekaran’s tenure, and a regulatory push to list. Tata Sons, the holding company of the coffee-to-cars conglomerate, has directed the airline to slow down expansion and consolidate.