National News
Air India receives first custom-made Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner after privatisation
Tata Group-owned Air India has taken delivery of its first custom-made Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner since the airline’s privatisation nearly four years ago, marking a key milestone in its fleet modernisation programme.
Tata Group-owned Air India has taken delivery of its first custom-made Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner since the airline’s privatisation nearly four years ago, marking a key milestone in its fleet modernisation programme.
An official said on Thursday that Air India completed the title transfer of the aircraft at Boeing’s Everett facility in Seattle on January 7. Following mandatory inspections by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the wide-body jet is expected to arrive in India in the coming days.
This is the first line-fit (factory-configured) Dreamliner inducted by Air India since it was acquired by the Tata Group in January 2022. Line-fit aircraft are built to an airline’s specific requirements at the production stage. The last such Dreamliner inducted by Air India was in October 2017, when the carrier was under government ownership.
The new Boeing 787-9 features a three-class configuration comprising business class, premium economy and economy seating.
According to the official, the aircraft is Air India’s first wide-body delivery under its massive aircraft order announced in 2023 and the 52nd aircraft overall from the 220 Boeing jets ordered that year.
Meanwhile, Air India Express has already inducted 51 Boeing 737-8 narrow-body aircraft, including its first line-fit plane, which joined the fleet in late December.
After the Tata Group takeover in January 2022, Air India placed landmark orders for 350 Airbus aircraft and 220 Boeing aircraft. Of the Airbus order, six A350 wide-body jets have already been inducted.
Air India currently operates 26 Boeing 787-8s and six Boeing 787-9s inherited from erstwhile Vistara, which was merged with the airline.
The Air India Group now has a fleet of over 300 aircraft, including 185 with Air India and the remainder with Air India Express. The official added that around a dozen legacy Dreamliners, upgraded with refreshed interiors, are expected to return to service through 2026.
In November last year, Air India CEO and Managing Director Campbell Wilson said the group plans to induct 26 wide-body and narrow-body aircraft and operate 81 per cent of its international flights with upgraded aircraft by the end of 2026.
