'Ratan Tata and I had a near-death experience': Aircel founder Sivasankaran recalls Seychelles flight fright with tycoon

Aircel founder C Sivasankaran recently shared about a terrifying experience he and former Tata & Sons chairman Ratan Tata had on an Air India flight. He revealed that they escaped a near-death moment after one of the plane's engines had failed.

"I and Tata were on a flight from Singapore to Seychelles when we learned that one of the plane's engines had failed. A secretary of Tata's said that if the other engine also failed, the plane could crash within 30 minutes," he said in a podcast ‘Figuring Out With Raj Shamani’.

The Aircel boss revealed at that point of time, a thought crossed his mind that death was very near and then he immediately sent an email to his son, sharing his Gmail password. “I told him I wish I would live longer. I was reconciled to the fact that I was dying..” he said.

Unlike Sivasankaran's quiet resignation, Ratan Tata remained calm, saying, "Let the pilots do their job." Fortunately, they both escaped harm as the second engine did not fail.

“One minute before landing, I saw whole airport was lighted up, ambulances and firefighters were standing. I was told these arrangements were made to protect the plane from being consumed by flames once it lands in the airport,” Sivasankaran said in the podcast.

While speaking about Ratan Tata as a person, Sivasankaran said, "What is so special about Ratan Tata is his selflessness and patriotism. He is a very balanced person, always focused on excellence and the good of the country, unlike me, who is always after money. For him, money is just a byproduct. His objective was always about what he could do for the country, even if it took 20 years. He was planting seeds for the future, like a banana tree. I don't have that kind of mentality."