New Delhi | August 19, 2026 | INFRAINTEL Bureau
(Storyboard18)
Air New Zealand has appointed outgoing Air India Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director Campbell Wilson as a director on its board, subject to shareholder approval at the airline’s annual meeting.
Wilson is scheduled to step down from his executive position at Air India in September. Air India announced his resignation on April 7.
Air New Zealand said Wilson and former airline executive Robert McDonald had been appointed to the board with immediate effect, subject to their re-election through a shareholder vote at the Annual Shareholders’ Meeting scheduled for September 24.
A native of New Zealand, Wilson has more than three decades of experience in the aviation industry. He has held several senior executive positions at Singapore Airlines and has served on the boards and executive bodies of major international aviation organisations.
His industry roles have included membership of the International Air Transport Association’s Board of Governors, the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines’ Board Executive Committee and the Star Alliance governance structure.
Wilson has led Air India during a significant period of restructuring and transformation. His tenure included efforts to integrate airline operations, modernise systems, renew the fleet and reposition the carrier under Tata Group ownership.
In an interview in Brazil in June, Wilson indicated that he did not intend to take up another full-time airline executive position after leaving Air India. He said he was considering board, advisory, academic and mentoring roles.
Robert McDonald, who has also been appointed to the board, previously served as Chief Financial Officer of Air New Zealand. He is presently the chair of Vero Insurance New Zealand and Contact Energy Limited.
Air New Zealand’s board currently has seven members, including Chair Dame Therese Walsh. Board member Larry De Shon is scheduled to retire in September.
Wilson’s return to the New Zealand aviation sector in a non-executive capacity could provide Air New Zealand with experience in airline restructuring, international operations, alliances and large-scale organisational transformation.
Air India, meanwhile, appointed former Ethiopian Airlines Group Chief Executive Tewolde Gebremariam as its new Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director on August 5.
The transition is significant for Air India’s continuing transformation. For Air New Zealand, Wilson adds aviation expertise amid fleet constraints, rising costs, geopolitical uncertainty and changing international travel patterns.