Air India to spend $400 mn to refurbish Boeing 777s and 787 fleet

Carrier will add new seats and best in-flight entertainment across all classes

Tata Group-owned carrier Air India will spend $400 million to overhaul the cabins of its Boeing 777 and 787 aircraft and introduce a premium economy service on medium- and long-haul routes.

The refurbishment plan and capacity expansion will help the airline grow market share in the face of stiff competition from European and West Asian carriers.

The refurbishment will overhaul cabin interiors: a task that will include adding new seats and the best in-flight entertainment across all classes in 27 Boeing 787 and 13 Boeing 777 aircraft. In addition, the refurbishment will introduce a premium economy cabin on both fleets. First class cabin will be retained on the 777s.

Air India has engaged JPA Design and Trendworks, London-based product design companies, to assist with the cabin interior design elements of this refurbishment programme. "The collaboration brings together two experts in the fields of aviation and interiors that have produced designs for major brands including Taj Hotels, The Orient Express and Herman Miller International," Air India said in a statement.

Air India said the engineering and regulatory process required for the changes has already been initiated and new cabins will be introduced from mid-2024.

Indian carriers carry around 44 per cent of all international traffic to/from India. IndiGo is the largest airline on international routes with 15 per cent share followed by Air India and Emirates with 11 per cent and 9 per cent respectively. Air India's no-frills arm has 8 per cent share, as per industry consultancy CAPA's data for second quarter FY 23.

Air India, which underwent a change in ownership in January, had not seen investment in products for several years due to a fund crunch resulting in loss of business. 

Competing carriers such as Emirates have been investing in product upgrades- the airline announced $ 2 billion investment in August to retrofit aircraft and enhance customer experience. In October Lufthansa announced its "largest investment in premium products" including suites in first and business class.

"Introducing premium economy makes sense as it will enable Air India to compete more effectively in the premium leisure segment which has been growing. Perhaps most importantly it makes integration with Vistara easier as Vistara has a premium economy product which has been quite important in Vistara's overall product positioning and strategy," said independent aviation analyst Brendan Sobie of consultancy Sobie Aviation.

High-flyer

• 114 aircraft in Air India’s fleet and they include Airbus and Boeing planes
• 36 planes, including Airbus A320/321 and Boeing 777* aircraft, the airline is leasing
• Refurbishment of 40 aircraft aimed at growing market share in international routes
• JPA Design and TrendWorks to assist in cabin interior design elements 

*One leased Boeing 777 has been inducted into the fleet