Latest news with #Boeing787-8Dreamliners
South China Morning Post
07-04-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Shorter layovers, new lounges, better jets: Air India's revival takes flight
Air India long languished under government ownership while cash-rich Middle Eastern rivals siphoned off travellers. Now the airline is trying to even the score with cheaper fares, fresh cabins and lounges as well as shorter layover times. Advertisement The multi-year turnaround programme will initially focus on the airline's 27 Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners that are more than 10 years old in some cases, with Air India seeking to complete a refit in early 2027. A second stage, involving older Boeing 777 wide-bodies, will start late next year, though that step is proving more complex because of issues with seat suppliers, according to Chief Executive Officer Campbell Wilson. 'Consistency makes an airline good,' Wilson said in an interview. 'There should be a consistency in product quality, crew service, punctuality, and experience at airports and in aircraft. We are working on all of those.' The interior of an Air India Airbus A350 plane, as displayed at the Wings India 2024 aviation event in Hyderabad last year. Photo: Reuters The Indian travel market offers huge untapped potential for local and foreign carriers, with a new middle class on the move and the government upgrading infrastructure including airports. Air India has sought to tap into that boom, placing a massive order two years ago for new aircraft with Airbus and Boeing to upgrade its fleet. The new lounges, faster connection timings and more skilled ground employees are other elements that seek to improve both the airline's profitability and the passenger experience at its hubs in New Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru and put the carrier back on the global map. A storied airline with close to a century of operation history, Air India has been brought under new ownership led by the Tata Group, which was among the aviation pioneers in the country. Upon taking over, the late Ratan Tata acknowledged in a statement in late 2021 that 'admittedly it will take considerable effort to rebuild Air India', adding there was an opportunity to 'regaining the image and reputation enjoyed in earlier years'. These things can't be turned around overnight Air India CEO Campbell Wilson Among the upgrades targeted by Wilson are better connection timings. For example, on a flight between Australia and Europe, a stopover in India has been reduced to 180 minutes, compared with as long as 10 hours previously. That, in turn, had helped Air India lift the percentage of transit passengers to a high single digit from practically nothing previously, he said.
Reuters
27-03-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Polish airline LOT signs deal for two Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners
WARSAW, March 27 (Reuters) - Polish flag carrier LOT has signed a deal for two Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners, Minister Dariusz Klimczak said on social media platform X on Thursday, which will be obtained through a lease deal according to LOT's chief executive. "In the face of global challenges related to the availability of wide-body aircraft, this success opens up new opportunities for LOT Polish Airlines expansion in line with its adopted development strategy," he wrote. The Dreamliners will be delivered to LOT in 2026,the airliner's chief executive Michal Fijol was cited by state news agency PAP. "Currently, these planes operate for another airline. I cannot say yet which entity it is," Fijol added, according to PAP. He was also cited as saying that the outcome of a tender for 84 aircraft to operate on regional routes should be made public within the next few weeks.
