Air India, India’s leading airline, announced 20 additional flights every week to Birmingham, London and San Francisco. This bolstering of the International Network is part of the airline’s ongoing endeavour to reclaim its position as a leader on the international aviation map.
The additional flights to these three global destinations will be introduced in a phased manner from October to December this year.
5,000 Additional Seats Every Week:
With 5 additional flights a week to Birmingham, 9 additional flights to London and 6 additional flights a week to San Francisco, Air India will be able to offer over 5,000 additional seats every week to customers and ensure ample choice in terms of connectivity, convenience, and cabin space.
Air India's New Flight Frequency to Birmingham, London and San Francisco
| Sl. No | Route | Origin | Destination | Current Frequency | New Frequency | Effective |
| 1 | ATQ-BHX | Amritsar | Birmingham | 1 | 3 | 2x Effective 03 Oct; 3x Effective 17 Nov |
| 2 | DEL-BHX | Delhi | Birmingham | 0 | 3 | 2x Effective 02 Oct; 3x Effective 16 Nov |
| 3 | DEL-LHR | Delhi | London | 11 | 14 | 30 Oct 2022 |
| 4 | BOM-LHR | Mumbai | London | 7 | 12 | 30 Oct 2022 |
| 5 | AMD-LHR | Ahmedabad | London | 3 | 4 | 30 Oct 2022 |
| 6 | BOM-SFO | Mumbai | San Francisco | 0 | 3 | 2 Dec 2022 |
| 7 | BLR-SFO | Bangalore | San Francisco | 0 | 3 | 15 Dec 2022 |
Increase of Flights Between India and UK:
Air India’s current schedule of 34 flights every week to the UK will now go up to 48 flights. Birmingham will receive extra five flights per week, three from Delhi and two additional from Amritsar. London will receive nine additional weekly flights, of which, five are from Mumbai, three from Delhi and one from Ahmedabad. Altogether, seven Indian cities will now have non-stop Air India flights to the UK’s capital.
Increase of Flights Between India and US:
Flights from India to the United States will increase from 34 to 40 per week. Air India will now connect Mumbai with San Francisco with a thrice-weekly service, and reinstate a three-times-weekly Bengaluru operation. This takes Air India’s San Francisco offering from 10 to 16 weekly, with non-stop service from Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru.
Air India Expanding/Restoring its Fleet:
In addition to leasing new aircraft, Air India has been working to restore existing narrow-body and wide-body aircraft to the operating fleet. The airline already flies daily direct between Delhi and Vancouver and also increased its capacity in various domestic sectors.
Also Read : Air India to Fly Direct Between Mumbai and Hong Kong
Vihaan.AI, The Transformation Roadmap
Unmatched customer service and convenience is one of the five identified pillars of Vihaan.AI, Air India’s transformational roadmap. The other pillars of Vihaan.AI include robust operations, industry leadership, commercial efficiency and profitability and attracting the best industry talent.
Air India Improves Refund Processing Capability & Turnaround Time
We have already shared about a special refund drive being conducted by Air India in our Flying Returns story. The airline shared details of the measures it has taken to improve the pain point area to enhance customer experience and meet customer expectations.
Air India has placed a high priority on clearing the backlog of refunds, and more than 2.5 lakh cases totalling over Rs 150 crore were processed in just the first few months post-privatisation.
Significant effort has since been placed on improving processes and systems and employing technology, to turn around new refund cases. As of today, an eligible refund request lodged on the Air India website will typically be processed by the airline within 2-3 days.
These refunds are a real trouble, as there are customers who don't even take a minute to read and understand the process flow, terms and conditions and keep bothering the brands pointlessly.
Conclusion:
As the airline continues with its transformation journey and reinvents itself, the addition of new flights on domestic and international routes within 10 months after the acquisition of TATA group are early steps and just the beginning of the journey with bigger aspirations.
