Air India to fly Boeing 787 to Sydney, Melbourne from August
By David Flynn, July 1 2013
Will Air India take the trophy to launch Australia's first Boeing 787 Dreamliner service?
In recent years the Indian flag-carrier has made plenty of noise about resuming its flights to Australia, after a 16 year absence, but the airline now seems intent on coming back with a Boeing 787-sized bang.
Listings provided by Air India to the global distribution system (GDS) used by travel agents, and spotted by the AirlineRoute website, show a daily Boeing 787 service (tagged as AI312/311) between Delhi and both Sydney and Melbourne starting from August 29.
Three flights each week would run from Delhi direct to Melbourne, then back up to Sydney and onwards to Delhi.
On the other four days the Boeing 787 would fly from Delhi into Sydney, then continue to Melbourne, before heading back directly to Delhi.
The flights would leave Delhi around 1pm and reach their first Australian port in the early hours of the following morning; the the return journey would see a mid-morning departure from Sydney or Melbourne to reach Delhi around 6pm that day.
The split schedule matches that outlined by an Air India executive in mid-2012, when the airline flagged Boeing 787 flights from September that year.
"We are thinking of doing Delhi-Melbourne-Sydney three times [a week], and Delhi-Sydney-Melbourne four times or three times a week" said Prashant Sukul, an Air India board member and joint secretary of the Indian Ministry of Civil Aviation, told The Sydney Morning Herald.
Air India currently has six Boeing 787s in its fleet with 21 still to be delivered.
Each is fitted out in a familiar layout employed by many 787 airlines, with 18 lie-flat business class seats arranged 2-2-2 and 238 economy seats with a 33 inch pitch ranked 3-3-3.
Other Boeing 787 news on Australian Business Traveller
- BA's Boeing 787 launch routes: Toronto, New York/Newark
- Perth gets set for Boeing 787 bonanza
- Air New Zealand reveals Boeing 787 routes, seating
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Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
02 Jul 2011
Total posts 1378
Seemingly confirmed.
https://www.smh.com.au/travel/direct-flights-to-india-at-last-20130630-2p4yl.html
Pity you can't book on the SYD-MEL tag
QFF Platinum
28 Oct 2010
Total posts 4
@moa99 - once air india realise there's a buck in it, SYD/MEL might become available!
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
25 May 2012
Total posts 580
They would also need to buy the rights to fly passengers between SYD/MEL. I just don't see that happening.
Virgin Australia - Velocity Rewards
23 May 2012
Total posts 268
It's great to see more 787s in Australian skies! I love the new aircraft for the smoother and much quiter ride. It's just I'm not sure whether business travellers would like Air India's 787 because Australian Business Traveller named their seats the ugliest seats.
However, it is good to see direct flights from Australia to India again. I got so shocked Qantas dropped them last year.
05 Aug 2013
Total posts 1
such a big relief to see this happening finally..Thanks heaps for your decision Air India..!!..It will save a lot of time of passengers both ways..non stop..in just 12 hrs one wud be in Delhi or Mel....woo hoo..!!!
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