'Running an airline is never an easy business': Ho Ching defends Temasek's Air India investment
Ho Ching, chairman of Temasek Trust, has defended Singapore Airlines' investment in Air India despite the airline's significant financial losses. She highlighted the historical challenges of the airline industry and the complexities of government-regulated carriers.
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Offers insight into the strategic investment decisions of major sovereign wealth-linked entities in the struggling aviation sector.
The airline industry is a difficult business to succeed in, and Ho Ching, chairman of Temasek Trust, has come out in support of Singapore Airlines' (SIA) investment in Air India.
Ho, the former CEO of Temasek Holdings, made a lengthy Facebook post on Wednesday (Sept 2) weighing in on recent discussions surrounding Air India's record loss of US$2.33 billion (S$2.97 billion) and request for $1.9 billion in fresh equity from shareholders Tata Sons and SIA.
In her post, Ho shared about Air India's history, from its origins as Tata Air Services in 1932, where it "quickly established a well-earned reputation as a premium service airline".
SIA had not been established yet at the time, and Tata Air Services had been considered an airline with "excellent service standards", she said.
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