r/airindia

I am booking last minute and air india is the only cheaper option. Will it be too bad? two adults and one child 7 years old.

Just came here to confirm what everyone knew. DO NOT fly with this airline.

Has anyone received their bonus reward points for points transferred to Maharaja account during the offer period in May?

HEY GUYS !

Trip planned from Kolkata (CCU) to Paris (CDG) and return from Zurich to CCU.

I am getting refundable tickets on both the airline sites of Etihad & Air India.

The Air India flight doesn’t fly through middle east & has only 1 layover at delhi from CCU and thereafter to Paris directly. However I have heard of poor service and unreliable flights when it comes to them.

Incase of Etihad everything would be cool unless there was this ongoing war situation. (Layover at Abu Dhabi)

Which airline should be the best option for me? (air india is way cheaper than etihad-refundable)

Hi everyone,
I'm booking an economy round-trip from JFK to Pune for late August (Aug 31 to Sep 12). I am looking into Air India options but I am heavily torn between two completely different routes:


JFK to DEL to PNQ - 4hr layover

Booked entirely on Air India. I see that the JFK-DEL leg uses the new A350, which looks great. But how is the transit experience at DEL? Also, I know I have to collect my bags at DEL for customs and re-check them for the domestic leg. Is a 3-4 hour layover enough time to deal with baggage and terminal changes if there are delays? Years ago I had a horrible experience transferring at Delhi, they made me pay for my checked bag for the DEL to PNQ.



JFK to BOM then taking a taxi/cab via the Expressway to Pune.

For those who do this route often, is it significantly less stressful to just take a cab from BOM to avoid the domestic flight transfer and baggage re-checking hassle? Or is the 4+ hour drive after an ultra-long-haul flight not worth it?

Would love to hear your experiences with baggage transfer smoothness at DEL vs. BOM, and overall thoughts on the AI economy experience for these specific routes (entertainment system, wifi etc). Thanks!

I'm planning to book this route for my parents mid-august. They are connecting from Bangalore. On AirIndia website, it says AI-191 will fly out from BOM at 0030 hrs and that it is a non-stop flight.

However flightradar shows that this flight typically takes off from BOM around 9pm. This is a good 3 hours before the scheduled departure. Anyone who recently took this flight - can you confirm what was the actual timing? I don't want to book my parents on this flight if the flight timings are themselves unclear.

Or is there a change in overall schedule right now with the situation in Middle East? In that case, could AirIndia decide to continue the current schedule (i.e., departure at 930pm from BOM)?

THE GOOD ONES:

• OK, so their 6 x A350-900 are great and has one of the best business class seats(currently undergoing checks)
• 3x b787-9 which is also really good and considered one of the best seats a 787 business class can offer (VT-AWA)and (VT-AWB)(VT-AWC)
• 2x retofitted 787-8, (VT-ANT)(VT-ANP)(VT-NAC soon to join and currently undergoing pant job)
• 6 x ex-vistara 787-9 which also have a solid cabin and are great and competetive(All have recently completed checks and maintanence in singapore)
• their only good b777-300er that air india originally owned VT-ALX
• their ex-etihad b777-300er which have etihads older business class seat and is outdated but still a solid cabin prodduct
• their 10 x ex-vistara a321neo/lr which have lie flat business class seats are kept in great condition
• finally their 90+ a320neo which all have refurbished cabins and are also a great solid product for shorter flights(so far 6 ex-vistara a320neo have been refreshed and painted in air india’s new colors)

THE BAD:

• air india's originally owned 21x b787-8 which have a very old 2-2-2 business class seats and old economy broken down seats with almost no funtional IFE (from which 3 retrofitting )
• their b777-300er(other than VT-ALX and ex-etihad) are again old broken down and expect nothing from those seats and even though refreshed with new covers, the seats are still broken
• their a321 and a320 which still have their older business class seats but will be refurbished soon
• lastly, their a319 which have stopped flying but not retired and kept as standby

Future orders and aircrafts coming up this year(updates):

• VT-ANC, their second refurbished 787-8 will soon join the fleet by end of July
• VT-AWD, their fourth 787-9 coming most probably by end of july
• 4x Air India’s A350-1000, out of which one is currently in storage and no clue what time of this year it will join AI as there are no business class seats on them.(third(MSN831) and fourth A35K will soon also start production as they got all parts ready
• VT-ANQ(Fifth one) 787-8 sent recently for refurbishment(hopefully by end of the year AI will have 8 retrofitted 787-8)

New Route changes for july:

• Air India AI131 officially started using the new 787-9 on BOM-LHR route
• also delhi to melboure will now be used by ex-etihad b777
• All A319 have stopped service but not retired and will be used as standby or when demand rises
• Air India planning 4x Delhi—Munich most probs from october
• Air india’s CEO also said planning on resuming most of the fligths they had to cancel cause of the war as tension lowers and oil prices get stable

Majority of the complains we get about air india's aircraft and seats are mostly from the BAD aircrafts they own.(but will get refurbished soon)
Do share some thoughts about this and ur experience with them.

Air India is looking to defer the delivery of hundreds of jets ​on order from Airbus and Boeing as ‌it cuts costs, two people familiar with the matter said, confirming a Bloomberg report.

Airbus  and ​Boeing  declined comment and Air India ​was not immediately available for comment.

In ⁠2023, Air India placed what was then ​a record order for a total of ​470 jets from Airbus and Boeing to accelerate the rebirth of its brand under new majority ​owners Tata Group. It also leased a ​further 25 jets.

The airline now faces mounting losses and ‌operational ⁠disruptions linked to the Iran conflict, compounding the effects of Pakistan's airspace ban and a crisis of confidence following a ​fatal Boeing 787 ​crash a ⁠year ago.

Air India last month cut flights on several routes, citing ​airspace restrictions and record jet fuel ​prices.

Bloomberg ⁠News reported earlier that Air India is looking to defer deliveries, cut flights and ⁠postpone ​expansion plans after Tata ​Group instructed it to focus on reducing its record losses.

https://www.reuters.com/world/india/air-india-seeks-defer-hundreds-jet-deliveries-sources-say-2026-06-12/

Hi!

Is possible to book with Maharaja Points to destinations where there is no direct Air India flights? For eg, to Oslo (Norway) from Delhi, there is connection with either Air France/Lufthansa. These details are visible when searching for normal flights, but when it comes to points redemption, no flights for no dates.

Has anyone ever booked?

TIA.

Am travelling in AI144 soon and wanted to check if WiFi is rolled out for this Boeing 777. I know the Airbus A350 already has it active. So wanted to check this one. Please help 🤍

✈️ URGENT: Air India Gift Voucher for Sale

I'm selling an Air India Gift Voucher worth ₹20,000.

💳 Voucher Value: ₹20,000

⏳ Expires: Tomorrow

✅ Unused

💰 Selling at a discounted price for a quick sale.

If you're planning to book an Air India flight immediately, this is a great opportunity to save money.

Serious buyers only. Please DM me as soon as possible.

Even in points because it’s not worth it? And why won’t you fly them again?

With Air India expanding its long-haul fleet, I was thinking about two potential long-term routes:

• **Ahmedabad ↔ Newark**

• Future **GIFT City International Airport ↔ New York metropolitan area**

My reasoning is:

Large Gujarati diaspora in New Jersey and New York.
Significant student travel between Gujarat and U.S. universities.

Strong business ties in pharmaceuticals, engineering, IT, finance, and diamonds.

Cargo opportunities from Gujarat.

GIFT City is developing into India’s international financial services center, which could increase premium business travel.

If India and the U.S. were ever to establish reciprocal preclearance facilities, that could also improve the passenger experience, although airline economics would still determine whether such routes are viable.

I’m interested in hearing from aviation professionals and frequent travelers:
Do you think Ahmedabad–Newark route is commercially viable?

Would a future GIFT City airport have enough premium demand for a nonstop New York-area service?
What challenges would Air India face in launching these routes?

One idea that might make this route more viable is to operate it seasonally rather than year-round.
Instead of a daily service, Air India could consider running SVPI Ahmedabad–Newark only during peak travel periods, such as:
Summer (May–August), when students and families travel.
The start of the U.S. academic year.
The Diwali festive season.
The December–January holiday period.
Interestingly, Air India has previously recognized demand in this market by operating an Ahmedabad–London–Newark service. A seasonal nonstop (or limited-frequency) operation could be a way to test today’s market without committing aircraft year-round.
With the large Gujarati diaspora in the New York/New Jersey area, strong student traffic, family visits, business travel, and cargo demand, I think it’s a route worth evaluating. If seasonal performance is consistently strong, Air India could then decide whether expanding the service makes commercial sense.

need hundred k points

DM

Have 90k points, don’t plan on using them - looking for ways to sell