Two CEOs out. India's airlines adrift.

The CEO who made IndiGo fly higher.

His highway was smooth — until it wasn't.

Absent in crisis. Present on the report.

Toughest job in aviation. He took it anyway.

Billions lost. A crash. Then he walked.

One prints. One bleeds. Both need a pilot.

The cost assassin lands at IndiGo.

Clean slate. Clear mandate. Walsh takes over.

Conclusion

Credits

In a single month, India's two largest airlines lost their CEOs. Pieter Elbers was pushed out of IndiGo following a catastrophic December 2025 meltdown that stranded 300,000 passengers and wiped 78% of profits. Campbell Wilson chose a more dignified exit from Air India, a planned departure from a carrier still bleeding billions, scarred by a fatal Ahmedabad crash, and hamstrung by a decades of legacy issues. Two expats, two very different tenures, two very different endings. In this episode, host Anirban Chowdhury talks to  ET's aviation tracker Arindam Majumdar and  John Strickland, a global aviation expert and founder of JLS Consulting to break down what went wrong, where both airlines stand today, Air India’s top-level void and the task ahead for Willie Walsh, one of global aviation’s toughest leaders slated to head IndiGo. 

You can follow Anirban Chowdhury on his social media: X and Linkedin

Check out other interesting episodes like: How Will a Volatile ₹ Impact You in 2026?, How Quick Commerce is Triggering a Health Crisis for Gen Z, Two Women Fought to Change India's Maternity Laws...and Succeeded,Can India Truly End Naxalism?, Semaglutide Goes Generic: Big Pharma’s Moat Breaks  and much more.


Catch the latest episode of ‘The Morning Brief’ on The Economic Times Online, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, JioSaavn, Amazon Music and Youtube.

In a single month, India's two largest airlines lost their CEOs. Pieter Elbers was pushed out of IndiGo following a catastrophic December 2025 meltdown that stranded 300,000 passengers and wiped 78% of profits. Campbell Wilson chose a more dignified exit from Air India, a planned departure from a carrier still bleeding billions, scarred by a fatal Ahmedabad crash, and hamstrung by a decades of legacy issues. Two expats, two very different tenures, two very different endings. In this episode, host Anirban Chowdhury talks to  ET's aviation tracker Arindam Majumdar and  John Strickland, a global aviation expert and founder of JLS Consulting to break down what went wrong, where both airlines stand today, Air India&rsquo;s top-level void and the task ahead for Willie Walsh, one of global aviation&rsquo;s toughest leaders slated to head IndiGo. You can follow Anirban Chowdhury on his social media:<a href="https://twitter.com/AnirbanET"> X</a> and<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/anirban-chowdhury-b5067219/"> Linkedin </a>Check out other interesting episodes like:<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/the-morning-brief/id1568661777?i=1000742733036"> How Will a Volatile ₹ Impact You in 2026?</a>,<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/the-morning-brief/id1568661777?i=1000740924439"> How Quick Commerce is Triggering a Health Crisis for Gen Z</a>, <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/the-morning-brief/id1568661777?i=1000760362789">Two Women Fought to Change India's Maternity Laws...and Succeeded</a>,<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/the-morning-brief/id1568661777?i=1000738205536"> </a><a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/the-morning-brief/id1568661777?i=1000757611462">Can India Truly End Naxalism?</a>, <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/the-morning-brief/id1568661777?i=1000756051799">Semaglutide Goes Generic: Big Pharma&rsquo;s Moat Breaks</a>&nbsp; and<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/the-morning-brief/id1568661777"> much more</a>.
 Catch the latest episode of &lsquo;The Morning Brief&rsquo; on<a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/podcast?from=mdr"> The Economic Times Online</a>,<a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/6PL5kfPbwURBEu6fHCVTOL?si=26ec0fbfa7134fea"> Spotify</a>,<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/the-morning-brief/id1568661777"> Apple Podcasts</a>,<a href="https://www.jiosaavn.com/shows/the-morning-brief/1/GNPiFQD2xpY_"> JioSaavn</a>,<a href="https://music.amazon.in/podcasts/f378141f-9afb-495d-83da-9b08ec5047ac/the-morning-brief"> Amazon Music</a> and<a href="https://www.youtube.com/@theetpodcasts"> Youtube</a>.

To make sense of the week’s hottest stories in business, economy, politics and markets, journalists from the Economic Times chat with reporters and industry leaders in this thrice-weekly (Tuesday, Thursday, Friday) podcast.

The Morning Brief

Indian Aviation’s Biggest CEO Shake-Up