Air India takes delivery of first Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner in 4 years, details inside

The Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft features a total of 296 seats. The seats are further divided into three classes: business, premium economy, and economy.

The Tata Group-owned airline, Air India, has taken delivery of its first Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner in almost four years. This sets an important milestone in the modernisation of the fleet after privatisation. The aircraft was delivered at Indira Gandhi International Airport on Monday. It’s registered as VT-AWA. It came to the airport on Monday, i.e., January 12, all the way from the Everett Facility of Boeing in the United States. This aircraft is the first line-fit, custom-built Dreamliner which was delivered to the company since it came under the Tata Group.

Details of the aircraft

The Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft features a total of 296 seats. The seats are further divided into three classes: Business, Premium Economy, and Economy. It also has bespoke interiors, which are installed directly on the production line of the Boeing. This step reflects the company’s new cabin design philosophy. According to the company, the new interiors will serve as the standard of reference for the Dreamliner fleet range. Under this plan, 26 legacy Boeing 787-9 aircraft will be getting phased reassembling.

What are the deployment plans on long-haul international routes?

The aviation company Air India said that the newly delivered Boeing 787-9 will be deployed on the long-haul commercial services internationally from the next month. In addition, the complete schedule of operation is yet to be announced. The aircraft is most likely to solidify the premium international offerings. It’s because the step makes it competitive with other global carriers on the major routes.

More aircraft in 2026

The company said that the year 2026 will be a major year for the expansion of the fleet. It also said that additionally six wide-body aircraft are scheduled to be delivered, which also includes A350-1000s and more of the Boeing 787-9s. In November 2025, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and managing director of Air India, Campbell Wilson, stated that the airline’s aim is to have 81 per cent of its flights that function internationally have upgrades in the aircraft by 2026.

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