Air India’s Boeing 787-9 in flight with the refreshed Maharaja emblem, symbolizing the airline’s bold 2026 fleet and service upgrade.
Published on: November 26, 2025 at 23:46
For years, Indian flyers have associated Air India with delays, technical glitches, aging cabins and an overall hit-or-miss experience. At the same time, there has always been a sense of emotional connection with the “Maharaja” brand and its legacy as India’s national carrier. Now, under the Tata Group, the airline is in the middle of an aggressive transformation, and 2026 is being positioned as the year when passengers will finally “see and feel” the difference.
Air India’s CEO Campbell Wilson has repeatedly indicated that 2026 will bring the most visible changes in terms of aircraft, cabins, service standards and overall product quality. This includes a mix of new aircraft deliveries, a deep retrofit of the existing wide-body fleet, and a renewed focus on the long-haul international network—especially as the airline navigates geopolitical headwinds and changing demand in markets like the United States.
New Aircraft, New Cabins: How Air India’s Fleet Will Look Different by 2026
The backbone of Air India’s turnaround is a massive fleet modernisation programme that aims to replace inconsistency with a clearly defined, world-class product. The airline has an overall order book of 570 aircraft, of which more than 500 are still to be delivered over the next several years. While the bulk of these jets will arrive closer to the end of the decade, 2026 will still be a turning point in terms of visible fleet changes.
According to public briefings, Air India expects to induct around 26 new aircraft in calendar year 2026, combining wide-body and narrow-body jets. This includes six new wide-bodies, a mix of Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners and Airbus A350-1000s, plus about 20 new narrow-body aircraft for domestic and regional routes. The airline’s first “line-fit” 787-9—built from scratch to Air India’s own cabin specifications—is expected to arrive just before Christmas and enter service in early 2026, symbolising the start of its new long-haul product.
For passengers, the promise is clear: more modern cabins, better seat design across classes, updated in-flight entertainment, and reliable Wi‑Fi on a growing share of international flights. By late 2026, Air India aims for around 81% of its international flights to be operated with upgraded aircraft, which would be a sharp break from the patchy experience customers have faced in the past.
ALSO READ: Reliance Jio IPO by 2026: Mukesh Ambani’s Big Bet on AI, Global Expansion & Digital India
Deep Retrofit: Two-Thirds of 787-8s Upgraded, Narrow-Bodies Modernised
New deliveries alone cannot change a legacy airline overnight, especially when a large part of the fleet consists of older jets. That is why Air India is investing heavily in a retrofit programme for its existing aircraft, particularly the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners and its narrow-body workhorses.
The plan is ambitious. The airline has 26 legacy Boeing 787-8s, and the first two upgraded jets are already undergoing retrofit in California, with a return to service expected around early 2026. Air India’s target is to push two to three Dreamliners through retrofit every month, aiming to have about two-thirds of the 787-8 fleet upgraded by the end of 2026, and the entire fleet done by mid‑2027. These upgrades cover full interior overhauls, new or improved in-flight entertainment, connectivity, and refreshed cabins across business and economy.
On the narrow-body side, Air India has already modernised more than 80% of its older single-aisle aircraft, fitting them with new cabin interiors and a more consistent product for domestic and short-haul regional routes. Some older jets that were originally supposed to be retired have been temporarily retained because of global delivery delays at Airbus and Boeing, but they are part of a phased plan that still leads towards a younger, more uniform fleet later in the decade.
This retrofit strategy is essentially a bridge: while the big order of 570 aircraft will take years to fully materialise, Air India wants passengers to notice better cabins and a more reliable onboard experience now, not in 2030. For frequent flyers, the practical tip is to watch the specific aircraft type when booking—refitted 787-8s, new 787-9s and A350-1000s are likely to offer the clearest jump in comfort and technology.
Demand, Geopolitics and Service: Why 2026 Is More Than Just New Metal
Fleet is only one part of the turnaround story; demand patterns and geopolitics are forcing Air India to make careful choices about where and how fast it grows. The airline has openly acknowledged that US-bound demand has been hit by geopolitical factors and recent safety incidents, leading to temporary cuts and adjustments in parts of its long-haul network. Some routes have been trimmed or paused for economic reasons, even as the airline restores most of its earlier capacity.
Interestingly, even with 26 new aircraft entering the fleet in 2026, Air India expects overall capacity to remain “largely flat” during that year. The reason: some older aircraft will be returned to lessors or retired, and a number of jets will be taken out of service temporarily for retrofit. In simple terms, the airline is trading quantity for quality in the short term—choosing to stabilise capacity while sharply upgrading the product that customers actually experience.
At the same time, Air India is trying to align its service and ground experience with its new fleet. The airline is preparing updated food and beverage offerings, with improved menus on international routes followed by enhanced domestic catering, and it is investing in better lounges, including a new Maharaja Lounge at Delhi’s Terminal 3 and upgrades in major international hubs like San Francisco and New York JFK. For a brand that has often been criticised for inconsistent service, these changes are meant to signal that the “new Air India” is not just about fresh paint and new aircraft types, but a more complete end‑to‑end journey.
If all of this is executed on schedule, 2026 could mark the point where Indian travellers stop asking “Will the flight be okay?” and start asking “Which Air India product am I getting—old or new?” Over time, the airline wants the answer to be simple: almost everything you touch, from the website to the seats and the meal, reflects a modern, globally competitive Maharaja.
As Travellers, What Should We Really Expect?
As Indian travellers, many of us have mixed feelings about Air India: a blend of nostalgia, frustration, and cautious optimism. What stands out in Campbell Wilson’s current roadmap is the specific, measurable nature of the promises—two-thirds of 787-8s upgraded by end‑2026, all by mid‑2027, 81% of international flights on upgraded aircraft, 26 new planes in 2026, and more than 80% of narrow-bodies already modernised. These are not just slogans; they are milestones that can be tracked over the next two to three years.
On a personal level, it feels like India is finally giving its flagship airline the tools and investment it always needed to compete fairly with global giants—something many Indian flyers have wanted for a long time. If Air India can combine these fleet and product upgrades with consistent on-time performance, transparent communication, and genuinely responsive customer support, then 2026 may well be remembered as the year the Maharaja stopped just talking about a comeback and actually delivered one in the cabin. For now, the most practical thing you can do as a passenger is to stay informed, choose upgraded aircraft when possible, and watch closely whether the airline turns this ambitious blueprint into everyday reality.
About the Author
