Air India receives first custom Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner since privatisation
Official sources said the Tata-owned carrier completed the aircraft's title transfer at Boeing's Everett factory in Seattle on January 7
Air India, owned by the Tata Group, has received its first Boeing 787-9 aircraft following the airline's official privatisation four years ago. This also marks the airline's first line-fit or custom-designed Dreamliner.
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Line fit generally denotes an aircraft that is specifically manufactured for a certain airline.
Title transfer done in Seattle
On Thursday (January 9), an official said the carrier concluded the title transfer of the Dreamliner at Boeing’s Everett factory in Seattle, USA, two days ago.
Air India's spreading wings
- Following the acquisition by Tatas in January 2022, Air India made orders for 350 Airbus and 220 Boeing aircraft. Among the Airbus orders, six A350s have already been integrated into the Air India fleet.
- Air India currently possesses 26 B787-8s and six B787-9s from the former Vistara, which has been merged with the airline.
- At present, the Air India Group operates more than 300 aircraft, comprising 185 planes under Air India and the rest with Air India Express.
- Official sources said a dozen more legacy Dreamliners with refreshed interiors are expected to return to service through 2026.
Following evaluations conducted by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, the aircraft is anticipated to reach India in the next few days.
New aircraft has three-class configuration
The new plane has a three-class configuration — economy, premium economy and business class seats.
The last line-fit Dreamliner that was acquired by Air India was in October 2017, when it was still under government ownership.
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According to the official, the latest aircraft is the airline's first wide-body and 52nd overall delivery from the 220 Boeing jets ordered in 2023.
Air India Express has already taken delivery of 51 narrow-body Boeing 737-8s, including its first line-fit plane that was inducted in late December.
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Last November, Air India CEO and MD Campbell Wilson said the aviation group expects to induct 26 wide-body and narrow-body planes and operate 81 per cent of its international flights with upgraded aircraft by the end of the current year.
(With agency inputs)