Air India Boeing 787: on Sunday unveiled its first retrofitted Boeing 787 aircraft. With this, the Tata Group-owned carrier has completed the first upgrade in a planned refurbishment of 26 B787 aircraft. As part of a USD 400 million program to modernise its legacy fleet, the airline will retrofit the remaining 25 B787 aircraft over the next year.
In a statement, Air India said: “As part of the retrofit, the aircraft interiors were completely reconfigured, transforming it from a two-class layout previously to a modern three-class configuration now with the installation of brand-new seats and inflight entertainment (IFE) system, and bringing the aircraft in line with Air India’s latest widebody product standards, as seen on its new bespoke Boeing 787-9 inducted in January 2026.”
It further said that upon full completion of the Boeing 787 retrofit program by 2027, the airline aims to significantly enhance its onboard product and passenger experience across more than 300 weekly flights to destinations in the United Kingdom, Europe and Australia.
“Air India will subsequently retrofit 13 of its legacy B777-300ER aircraft,” it added.
The first upgrade of the twin-aisle Boeing 787-8 aircraft (registered VT-ANT) took nearly 12,825 man-hours over 45 days to complete. The retrofit involved around 475 metres of fabric for new seats across cabins, 167 metres of synthetic leather, 169 metres of carpeting and 646 litres of paint.
After the retrofit, the upgraded Boeing 787 aircraft of Air India will now feature:
In addition, Air India B787 aircraft’s upgrade across cabins include new carpets and curtains, updated wall laminates, galley overhauls, a complete refresh of all lavatories, replacement or refurbishment of overhead bin panels, installation of a new Cabin Service System and an upgraded Crew Application Panel interface.
