Air India is set to launch its first international flights using the Airbus A350-900, beginning on May 1, with services connecting Delhi International to Dubai International. This marks a significant milestone as the airline expands its A350 operations beyond domestic routes.
Since the beginning of the year, Air India has been integrating A350s into its fleet, primarily on domestic circuits. These routes include flights from Bengaluru International to Chennai, Delhi International, Hyderabad International, and Mumbai International, as well as between Delhi and Mumbai, and Hyderabad to Chennai and Mumbai. Currently, the airline operates three active A350s, with a fourth recently delivered, according to the ch-aviation schedules module.
The A350 configuration for Air India includes 28 business class seats, 24 premium economy seats, and 264 economy seats. The airline has ambitious plans for its A350 fleet, with 16 more A350-900s on order, bringing the total to 20, and an additional twenty A350-1000s slated for future delivery.
This international debut is part of Air India’s comprehensive fleet upgrade, which involves a total of 446 new jets on order. Air India’s CEO, Campbell Wilson, has highlighted the airline’s aggressive fleet expansion strategy, planning to introduce, on average, one new aircraft every six days throughout the year.
As of now, no further international routes for the A350 fleet have been announced. The launch of A350 services to Dubai underscores Air India’s commitment to enhancing its global route network and improving passenger experience with newer, more efficient aircraft.
