India's national carrier, Air India, and the recently-created Airport Economic Regulatory Authority, AERA, will likely have new chiefs named on Friday, after a high-profile meeting - under the chairmanship of Cabinet Secretary K M Chandrasekhar - takes a decision regarding the persons to be at the helm of affairs of the two organizations.

Other known dignitaries to participate in the top-level meeting include Prime Minister's principal secretary TKA Nair, civil aviation secretary M Madhavan Nambiar, and public enterprises selection board chairman Naresh Narad.

According to unnamed sources, aware of the proceedings underway, the outgoing UPA government is mulling over the proposal of shifting Air India's current Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) Raghu Menon, as the head of the AERA. Menon is the top contender for the post of the AERA chairman, along with former AAI chief K Ramalingam.

A 1974-batch IAS officer, Menon, who is presently on leave till April 30, took over as the CMD of AI in April last year. His appointment officially continues till 2010. There no succession line-up worked out for Menon till yet.

The outgoing government can either give temporary charge of AI to an official of the civil aviation ministry or a senior director of AI, and a full-time CMD will be appointed by the new government, after it takes over in June.