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Aloke Singh to step down as Air India Express chief
Hamish Maxwell takes charge of compliance and safety as carrier reshapes operations
MUMBAI: Aloke Singh is set to step down as chief executive of Air India Express, drawing the curtain on what he calls a five year phase of “defining transformation” at the Tata Group’s low cost international carrier.
In a farewell memo to employees, Singh reflected on an airline that, in his words, evolved from a “sub-scale niche operator into India’s third-largest narrow-body carrier”. It was a tenure marked not just by change, but by scale. Under his leadership, the fleet expanded four fold to more than 100 aircraft, while the workforce grew to around 8,300 people.
The airline confirmed that Hamish Maxwell, currently chief operating officer, will assume the role of accountable manager. He will oversee regulatory compliance, operational performance and safety, taking charge at a time when operational discipline is central to the airline’s next phase.
Singh’s departure comes as Air India Express continues to streamline its fleet and network while aligning more closely with the broader ambitions of the Air India group. The integration drive, following the merger with AirAsia India, aims to simplify operations and strengthen the carrier’s position in India’s fiercely competitive budget travel market.
Reflecting on the intense merger process and rapid fleet expansion, Singh told employees that what would endure most was the “team’s resolve and professionalism during high-pressure moments”. The tone of his note was both proud and personal. “Ours has been a journey without parallel. I would not trade a single chapter,” he wrote.
A seasoned aviation executive, Singh has led Air India Express since November 2020. Before that, he served as senior advisor for airline consulting at CAPA – Centre for Aviation and was co founder and chief executive of OpenSky Resorts. Earlier in his career, he held the role of chief officer network planning at Oman Air in Muscat, and spent more than two decades in various roles at Air India Limited, culminating as executive director for strategy and planning.
As Singh signs off, Air India Express finds itself larger, leaner and mid transition. With Maxwell now overseeing compliance and safety, the airline’s message is clear: the transformation story may have a new narrator, but the flight path remains firmly set.
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Apple bites back: the $599 MacBook Neo is the cheapest Mac ever made
The tech giant unveils a budget laptop that packs a punch — and a lot of cheek
CALIFORNIA: Apple has never been shy about charging a premium. So when Cupertino rolls out a MacBook at $599 (approx. Rs 55,000) , it’s worth sitting up straight.
The MacBook Neo, unveiled Tuesday, is Apple’s most affordable laptop to date — undercutting its own MacBook Air and taking a sharp swipe at the budget PC market in one fell swoop. It starts at $499 for students, which, for a machine with Apple silicon inside, is frankly a steal.
At the heart of the Neo is the A18 Pro chip — the same muscle that powers the latest iPhones. Apple claims it is up to 50 per cent faster for everyday tasks than a rival PC running Intel’s Core Ultra 5, and three times quicker on on-device AI workloads. Fanless and featherweight at 2.7 pounds, it runs silently and promises up to 16 hours of battery life. Try doing that on a Chromebook.
The 13-inch liquid retina display clocks in at 2408-by-1506 resolution with 500 nits of brightness and support for billion colours — sharper and brighter, Apple says, than most rivals in this price band. It comes dressed in four colours: blush, indigo, silver, and a zesty new citrus, with matching keyboard shades to boot.
Connectivity is modest — two USB-C ports, a headphone jack, Wi-Fi 6E, and Bluetooth 6 — but this is a budget machine, not a pro workstation. The 1080p FaceTime camera, dual mics with directional beamforming, and Spatial Audio speakers round out a package that punches well above its weight class.
Apple senior vice-president of hardware engineering John Ternus alled it “a laptop only Apple could create.” That’s the kind of line that makes rivals wince — because, annoyingly, he might be right.
The Neo runs macOS Tahoe, with Apple Intelligence baked in for AI writing tools, live translation, and the sort of on-device smarts that keep user data away from the cloud. It also boasts 60 per cent recycled content — the highest of any Apple product — for those who like their bargains with a side of conscience.
For $599, Apple isn’t just selling a laptop. It’s selling an argument — that good design and real performance needn’t cost the earth. The PC industry had better have a decent comeback ready.
