Mumbai, Feb 16 (PTI) Air India on Monday announced frequency enhancement as well as deployment of aircraft with retrofitted or upgraded cabin interiors on additional key international routes as part of 2026
Northern Summer Schedule.
The airline said it will increase frequency on Delhi-Toronto routes from 7 times per week to 10 times, starting March 1, while from March 29 onwards, Delhi-Seoul (Incheon) frequency will be increases from five times a week to six times, and the newly launched Delhi-Shanghai flights services will be increased to five times a week from four times, thereby adding 2,048 seats on each of the routes every month, it said.
The carrier said that effective February 14, services on the Delhi-Tokyo (Haneda) route, being operated with B787-9 aircraft, feature a three-class cabin configuration with the addition of premium economy.
This deployment adds 2,408 seats between Delhi and Tokyo (Haneda) every month, Air India said.
According to the airline, Mumbai-London (Heathrow) flights will operate with a combination of the incoming new B787-9 planes and retrofitted legacy B787-8 aircraft, both featuring all-new cabin interiors, beginning July 1.
These flights will replace the currently deployed B777-300ER on the route, which already have upgraded cabin interiors, it said, and added that Delhi-Melbourne daily flights will operate with a B777-300ER aircraft featuring upgraded cabin interiors, thus introducing First Class on the route, from July 1.
The aircraft features eight suites in first class, 40 fully flat beds in business class and 280 seats in the economy class, adding nearly 4,000 seats every month between Delhi and Melbourne, it said.
Similarly, from August 1, Bengaluru-London (Heathrow) flights will operate with the airline's retrofitted B787-8 aircraft, featuring new cabin interiors, thus introducing Premium Economy on the route. With this, all Air India flights to and from London (Heathrow) will be serviced by aircraft featuring new cabin interiors.
Besides, the seven times-a-week flights on the Delhi-Toronto route will operate with Air India's incoming, new B787-9 aircraft, featuring all-new cabin interiors in a three-class configuration and introducing premium economy on the route, from August 1.
The remainder three times-per-week flights will continue to operate with Air India's legacy B777-300ER, and with this, more than 50 per cent of Air India's North America flights will be operated with new or upgraded cabin interiors, the airline started.
At the same time, the airline's flights to Birmingham from Amritsar and Delhi, and to London (Gatwick) from Ahmedabad and Amritsar will be operated with Air India's legacy B777-300ER, replacing the currently deployed legacy B787-8 and introducing first class on these routes, it said.
Air India began retrofitting its legacy B787-8 last year in an exercise that will see 26 legacy B787-8 aircraft refitted with brand-new cabin interiors custom-styled for Air India as well as the repainting of these aircraft in the airline's vibrant, new livery.
The first two of these retrofitted aircraft are expected to return to service in the coming weeks, with several more to be retrofitted progressively throughout 2026, according to the airline.
Additionally, Air India expects deliveries of three new, custom-made B787-9 and two custom-made A350-1000 aircraft in 2026, Air India said. PTI IAS RAM BAL HVA
