Air India is set to raise the bar on India Australia travel in 2026, with the introduction of a Boeing 777 featuring private First Class suites and upgraded Business Class cabins on its Delhi Melbourne route. From July 1, 2026, the airline will switch the daily service from the current Boeing 787 Dreamliner to a three class Boeing 777 fitted with enclosed First Class suites and a more spacious Business Class, significantly enhancing comfort and choice for premium travelers on this fast growing corridor.
A New Era of Luxury on the Delhi Melbourne Route
The shift to the Boeing 777 marks the first time Air India will offer a dedicated First Class cabin on the Delhi Melbourne sector. Until now, the route has generally been operated by Boeing 787 Dreamliners, which, while modern, offered only Business and Economy cabins and had come under pressure from increasingly competitive premium products offered by rival carriers through Southeast Asia and the Middle East. The arrival of First Class is therefore both a product upgrade and a strategic signal that Air India intends to compete head on for high yielding traffic between India and Australia.
The 777 assigned to the route is configured with eight fully enclosed First Class suites, 40 Business Class seats in a 1 2 1 layout, and a large Economy cabin. This represents a substantial premium capacity uplift compared with the Dreamliner, while also improving the overall quality of the hard product in the front of the aircraft. For corporate travelers, high net worth individuals, and well heeled leisure passengers, the ability to fly non stop between Delhi and Melbourne in a private suite or an all aisle access Business Class seat will be a powerful draw.
The move is aligned with Air India’s wider transformation program, which has seen upgraded Boeing 777s deployed on flagship routes from Mumbai to North America and London, as well as a multibillion dollar order for new generation aircraft and cabin retrofits. Bringing one of the airline’s most premium configured 777s to the Delhi Melbourne route extends this philosophy to an increasingly important long haul market, linking India’s capital with Australia’s cultural and events hub.
First Class Suites: Diamond Luxury at 35,000 Feet
At the apex of the new cabin layout are eight Diamond First Class suites installed at the very front of the Boeing 777. These suites originated with Etihad Airways and were acquired when Air India leased and subsequently purchased a batch of former Etihad 777s. Despite their previous life, they remain among the most private and spacious First Class seats flying today, and their deployment on the Delhi Melbourne route represents a major step up in exclusivity.
Each suite is framed by partitions up to around 1.6 meters high and equipped with a sliding door, creating an individual cocoon that can be closed off from the aisle. Inside, passengers will find a large, plush seat that converts to a fully flat bed of approximately two meters in length, providing ample space to stretch out on the roughly 12 hour flight between India and Australia. The design allows travelers to dine, work, recline, or sleep in near complete privacy, a feature that will particularly appeal to executives seeking rest before landing and affluent leisure travelers indulging in a special trip.
The First Class experience is expected to be complemented by elevated soft product elements, including multi course fine dining, premium champagne and spirits, and personalized service delivered by a dedicated cabin crew. Air India has been progressively refreshing its inflight menus and amenities as part of its Vihaan.AI transformation, and the First Class roll out on the Delhi Melbourne route gives the airline a high visibility platform on which to showcase its new hospitality standards.
For Melbourne based travelers heading to Delhi and beyond, First Class will open up a new tier of comfort on journeys that may continue onward to Europe, North America, or other parts of India via Air India’s Delhi hub. With schedules already optimized to provide two way connections between Europe and Australia over Delhi, the addition of First Class allows the airline to capture more through traffic that might previously have chosen to route via hubs like Singapore, Doha, or Dubai.
Business Class Upgrades: Wider Seats and Direct Aisle Access
Behind the First Class cabin, the Boeing 777 will feature 40 Business Class seats arranged in a 1 2 1 configuration, each with direct aisle access. These seats, also inherited from the aircraft’s previous operator, are a clear upgrade on the 2 2 2 Business Class layout found on many of Air India’s existing 787s and legacy widebody jets. The change eliminates the dreaded “climb over your neighbor” problem and brings the product more in line with global standards for long haul Business Class.
The Business Class seats convert into fully flat beds and offer generous width and pitch, along with large personal entertainment screens, adjustable lighting, and multiple storage areas. For passengers connecting from other Indian or international cities into Delhi before continuing to Melbourne, the promise of a long, uninterrupted sleep in a flat bed on the overnight or daytime sector will be particularly appealing. The cabin design, featuring alternating pairs and window seats, will also suit both solo travelers and couples.
Beyond the seat itself, Air India has been working to upgrade its Business Class experience with refreshed catering, redesigned tableware, and enhanced amenity kits and bedding. On a competitive route where travelers can choose one stop options via Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, or the Gulf, these improvements are crucial in convincing corporates and travel managers that Air India now offers a truly competitive end to end premium journey.
The Delhi Melbourne 777 deployment also provides an early glimpse into the direction of Air India’s wider Business Class overhaul. The airline is in the midst of a major cabin retrofit program and is rolling out new Business Class suites with doors on its next generation 787 9s. While the ex Etihad 777 Business cabin uses an earlier design, it nevertheless represents a tangible step up in privacy and comfort compared with the airline’s older angled lie flat and recliner seats still found on some routes.
Economy and Overall Cabin Experience
While the headlines naturally focus on First and Business Class, the Boeing 777 will also bring changes to the Economy experience on the Delhi Melbourne route. The aircraft offers a higher overall seat count than the 787 Dreamliner, giving Air India more capacity to meet the strong and growing demand between India and Australia, especially among visiting friends and relatives traffic and students. A larger cabin also allows the airline to refine its fare structure, offering more pricing tiers while maintaining a core of affordable seats.
Economy Class passengers can expect standard 777 long haul seating with individual entertainment screens, adjustable headrests, and in seat power outlets on most seats. The wider fuselage of the 777 compared with the 787 can translate into subtle differences in seat and aisle width, depending on the final configuration chosen by the airline. While Economy may not see the dramatic transformation evident in First and Business, Air India’s broader push to improve inflight catering, service consistency, and entertainment content should still deliver a more pleasant overall journey.
In addition to the physical seats, the 777 upgrade gives Air India more freight capacity in the belly hold, an important consideration for a route with strong cargo flows, including perishables, fashion, and personal shipments between India and Australia’s sizeable Indian diaspora. Enhanced cargo revenues can help underpin the economics of operating a more premium heavy aircraft, indirectly supporting the sustainability of First Class on the route.
Cabin ambience will also play a role in the new experience. Although these 777s are not brand new, Air India has already refreshed interiors on similar aircraft deployed from Mumbai to the United States and London, with improved lighting, refurbished panels, and upgraded inflight entertainment systems. A similar approach for the Delhi Melbourne aircraft would ensure that, while the seat architecture is familiar to seasoned travelers, the overall environment feels aligned with the airline’s new branding and standards.
Timings, Connectivity, and Competitive Landscape
The introduction of the Boeing 777 with First Class and upgraded Business Class on the Delhi Melbourne route slots neatly into Air India’s broader network strategy. The airline has already retimed its Delhi Sydney and Delhi Melbourne flights to improve two way connectivity with key European gateways such as London, Paris, and Frankfurt. These schedule adjustments allow passengers from Europe to connect through Delhi onto Australia with minimal layovers, positioning Air India as a true bridge between Europe and the southern hemisphere.
From July 2026, the daily Delhi Melbourne service on the 777 will tap into this connectivity matrix, offering premium travelers from Europe the opportunity to fly First or Business Class on both legs of their journey under a single airline brand. For example, a passenger flying from London or Frankfurt to Melbourne via Delhi could now enjoy a flat bed all the way, with a high level of service continuity and baggage checked through to the final destination.
The move also has clear competitive implications. On the India Australia market, Air India faces intense competition from carriers routing via Southeast Asia and the Middle East, many of which already offer advanced Business Class suites and, in some cases, First Class. By putting an aircraft with First Class suites directly onto a non stop India Australia route, Air India is aiming to repatriate high value customers who might otherwise choose a one stop option. The proposition of avoiding an extra connection while still enjoying a top tier premium seat is likely to resonate with time conscious corporate travelers.
For Melbourne, the upgrade further strengthens the city’s links to India at a time when student flows, business ties, and tourism are all expanding. Education remains a key driver of travel between the two countries, and as more Indian students choose Australian universities, the demand for reliable, comfortable, and frequent air services will only grow. The enhanced Air India product adds another premium dimension to this relationship, particularly for parents and family members visiting from India.
Part of a Wider Transformation of Air India’s Fleet
The deployment of a First Class equipped Boeing 777 on the Delhi Melbourne route in 2026 should be seen in the context of Air India’s sweeping transformation under the Tata Group. Since privatization, the airline has embarked on a major modernization of its long haul fleet, inducting refurbished 777s, placing record breaking orders for new Airbus and Boeing aircraft, and initiating large scale retrofits of its legacy widebody jets. The introduction of all new cabin interiors on its first made for Air India Boeing 787 9s in early 2026, complete with doored Business Class suites and upgraded Premium Economy, is another visible milestone in this process.
While the 777 to Melbourne uses a proven premium product inherited from another carrier, it fills an important interim role as Air India progressively standardizes its cabins and rolls out next generation seats across its fleet. Retrofits of older 777s and 787s are scheduled to ramp up through the second half of the decade, constrained largely by supply chain lead times and installation capacity. In the meantime, selectively assigning the best available hardware to strategically important routes enables Air India to improve customer perception and capture market share without waiting for the full retrofit program to conclude.
The First Class suites on the Delhi Melbourne flight also serve a branding purpose. For many travelers, particularly in Australia, their first or renewed impression of Air India will be shaped by news that the carrier now offers private suites and modern Business Class seating. Even those flying in Economy may feel more confident about booking with an airline that is visibly investing in the top end of its product, signaling a commitment to quality throughout the cabin.
As more of Air India’s new aircraft arrive, including Airbus A350s and additional Boeing 787 9s, the lessons learned from operating high end products on routes like Delhi Melbourne will inform future decisions on cabin layout, service design, and network deployment. The 777 upgrade is both a statement of intent and a live testbed for what premium passengers on Air India can expect across the network in the years ahead.
What Passengers Can Expect in 2026 and How to Prepare
For travelers planning trips between India and Australia in 2026, the introduction of the Boeing 777 with First Class suites and upgraded Business Class on the Delhi Melbourne route offers several practical takeaways. Those with flexibility in their travel dates should note the July 1, 2026 start of the new configuration and plan around that if they wish to experience the enhanced cabins. Given the limited number of First Class suites and the relatively small Business cabin compared with Economy, premium seats are likely to be in high demand, particularly around university term starts, major events, and holiday periods.
Frequent flyers and corporate travelers may also want to pay close attention to how Air India prices its new First Class and Business Class products on the route. As the airline seeks to stimulate demand and showcase its upgraded offering, there may be periods where introductory or tactical fares make the step up from Economy or Premium Economy more accessible than expected. Travel managers building or renegotiating corporate deals could find this a timely opportunity to incorporate Air India more fully into their India Australia travel policies.
Onboard, passengers in all cabins can expect a more internationally competitive product, even if the most dramatic changes are in the front of the aircraft. A non stop flight of around 12 hours is long enough to make differences in seat comfort, privacy, and service standards very tangible. For those connecting in Delhi from other Indian cities, timing their domestic arrivals to allow a smooth transfer onto the Melbourne bound 777 will help maximize rest and minimize transit stress.
Ultimately, Air India’s decision to roll out a Boeing 777 with First Class suites and upgraded Business Class on the Delhi Melbourne route in 2026 reflects both commercial logic and a renewed ambition to be seen as a world class long haul carrier. For passengers, it promises a more comfortable, private, and enjoyable way to cross the Indian Ocean, with India’s capital and Australia’s cultural capital now linked by an aircraft that finally matches the importance of the route.