Tata Group-promoted Air India plans to retrofit 16 additional Boeing 787-8 aircraft in 2027 even as it plans to induct more than 100 new aircraft across the group (Air India and Air India Express) in 2027 and 2028, the airline’s CEO Campbell Wilson told employees at a townhall on Thursday.According to Wilson, the airline continues to advance its fleet transformation programme despite a challenging operating environment.Notably, over the past six months, airlines globally have faced significant headwinds, including higher jet fuel prices, geopolitical tensions, airspace disruptions, currency depreciation and softer demand on the India-US corridor.Besides, the closure of Pakistani airspace has increased flight times for Indian carriers by up to three hours on several key Europe and North America routes, while disruptions arising from the Iran conflict have added to operational complexity and fuel costs.Despite these challenges, Wilson said Air India remained focused on building for the long term and continuing to invest in its fleet, product and operational capabilities.The airline’s $400 million legacy fleet retrofit programme is progressing, with the retrofit of the legacy narrowbody fleet completed and the widebody retrofit programme underway.At present, Air India has inducted three retrofitted Boeing 787-8 aircraft this year, with another four expected to enter service before the end of the year.Beyond the retrofit programme, the airline has added three new Boeing 787-9 aircraft in 2026, while two Airbus A350-1000 aircraft are expected later this year.Furthermore, 16 additional Boeing 787-8 aircraft are scheduled to undergo retrofit and return to service in 2027.Consequently, the retrofit of Air India’s Boeing 787-8 fleet is expected to be nearly complete by the end of 2027.Air India Group also plans to induct more than 100 new aircraft in 2027 and 2028, Wilson said.Meanwhile, he pointed out that customer response to the airline’s upgraded fleet has improved, with the retrofitted Boeing 787-8 fleet following refurbishment.More broadly, investments in new aircraft, upgraded cabins, food and beverage offerings, Maharaja Club lounges, loyalty enhancements, inflight entertainment and Wi-Fi have contributed to an improvement in customer sentiment.Additionally, Wilson said that temporary network curtailments arising from airspace restrictions were also used to accelerate engineering and fleet improvement initiatives.During this period, Air India advanced three major widebody maintenance checks, added six rejuvenation lines to address defects and introduced an additional Boeing production line to support faster retrofit execution.These measures have contributed to an improvement in widebody technical dispatch reliability, which has reached 97.4 per cent.In addition, Wilson informed employees that annual salary increments for all employees, including ground-based staff and cabin crew, will take effect from October 1, 2026.The increment cycle had been deferred earlier this year due to the impact of the Middle East crisis.Air India had also recently announced revised pilot remuneration, which will come into effect from October 1, 2026.Published on August 14, 2026