Air India is set to bring a new level of luxury to the India–Australia corridor, confirming that its Delhi–Melbourne service will be upgraded to a Boeing 777 equipped with a full First Class cabin from 1 July 2026. The move forms part of the carrier’s multibillion‑dollar fleet transformation and underscores how rapidly aviation links between India and Australia are evolving in response to surging demand, premiumisation of travel, and intensifying competition on long‑haul routes.
First Class Comes to the Delhi–Melbourne Skyline
From early July 2026, Air India’s daily Delhi–Melbourne flight will switch from a Boeing 787 Dreamliner to a Boeing 777 featuring eight enclosed First Class suites, 40 Business Class seats and a large Economy cabin. For Melbourne, this is the first time Air India has offered First Class on the route, catapulting the service into the same ultra‑premium territory currently dominated by Gulf and Asian network carriers.
The First Class product on this aircraft is based on Etihad Airways’ well‑regarded Diamond First suites, inherited when Air India leased and later purchased a batch of former Etihad 777‑300ERs. Each suite is framed by high walls with a sliding door, providing near‑complete privacy. The wide seat converts into a fully flat bed of roughly two metres, with direct aisle access for every passenger, a large personal screen, and substantial storage. While not the airline’s forthcoming next‑generation First product, it represents a significant step up from the twin‑aisle 787s currently serving the route, which have no First Class at all.
Behind the First Class cabin, the aircraft will offer a 1‑2‑1 Business Class layout, again based on Etihad’s earlier Pearl Business design, with lie‑flat seats and direct aisle access. This is a clear improvement on Air India’s older 2‑2‑2 business cabin layouts still found on some other widebodies and brings the Melbourne route closer in line with what premium travellers expect on a competitive 12‑hour sector.
The upgrade also increases overall capacity on the route. The 777‑300ER carries more seats than the 787‑8 while adding a new cabin tier at the very top. That combination allows Air India to court high‑yield corporate and affluent leisure traffic without sacrificing volume at the back of the aircraft, an important factor on a corridor that continues to see double‑digit growth in Indian visitor numbers to Australia and a swelling Indian diaspora in Victoria.
A Strategic Play in a Crowded Premium Market
Melbourne is one of the most hotly contested long‑haul arenas in the Asia–Pacific region. Emirates, Qatar Airways and Singapore Airlines have all invested heavily in premium cabins on routes linking Melbourne with Europe, North America and the Middle East. In recent months, Emirates has brought its refurbished four‑class Boeing 777‑300ER to the city, featuring its lauded “Game Changer” First Class suites, while also pushing more Premium Economy capacity into the Victorian market.
Against that backdrop, Air India’s decision to install First Class on Delhi–Melbourne is both defensive and aspirational. It prevents affluent India‑origin travellers and Australian corporate travellers from defaulting to rival hubs for top‑tier service and positions Delhi as a credible one‑stop alternative to Dubai, Doha or Singapore for journeys between Australia, Europe and North America.
For the airline, the move is also about brand repositioning. Under Tata Group ownership, Air India has been working hard to shed a legacy image of dated cabins and inconsistent service. Introducing First Class into a high‑visibility market such as Melbourne sends a strong signal to both customers and competitors that the carrier intends to be taken seriously as a full‑service global network airline. It also gives Air India a prestige product it can leverage in corporate contracts, alliance partnerships and high‑profile events.
The timing aligns with Air India’s wider long‑haul strategy. The airline has already deployed First Class‑equipped 777‑300ERs on Mumbai–Newark and Mumbai–London services and upgraded cabin products on U.S. routes from both Delhi and Mumbai, including newly introduced Premium Economy and refurbished widebodies. Extending a four‑class style proposition to Australia is a natural next step in that expansion.
Inside the Cabin: What Travellers Can Expect
While final details of the soft product for Delhi–Melbourne are still to be confirmed, the hard product is well documented. In First Class, travellers can expect a one‑two‑one configuration of fully enclosed suites with tall privacy doors, generous work and dining tables, and large entertainment screens. The layout allows couples in the centre pair to dine or work together, with a privacy divider that can be raised or lowered as required, while solo travellers can enjoy near‑isolation in the window suites.
Business Class on these 777s is arranged in a staggered 1‑2‑1 configuration, providing direct aisle access from every seat, a critical differentiator on a sector that can push 12 hours between block times. Seats convert into fully flat beds, and although the design is not the very latest generation of enclosed “mini‑suites” being rolled out on Air India’s incoming aircraft, it still represents a marked improvement over the angled‑flat or 2‑2‑2 layouts that once typified many carriers’ Australia services.
The Economy cabin will be arranged in a 3‑4‑3 configuration, in line with most contemporary 777 operators. Air India’s published seat maps for the type show standard pitch of about 32 inches and a seat width near 18 inches, with updated entertainment screens and charging options including universal power outlets and USB ports at every seat. While Economy passengers may not see radical changes compared with the existing 787, the 777’s larger cabin allows better management of high‑season demand and group bookings.
Air India has indicated that its global retrofit and new‑build programmes will introduce refreshed colour palettes, inflight connectivity and upgraded entertainment systems fleet‑wide. As those enhancements progressively reach the 777 fleet, Delhi–Melbourne travellers can expect further incremental improvements in lighting, screen quality and onboard connectivity, adding another layer of appeal to the route.
India–Australia Aviation Ties Enter a New Phase
The introduction of First Class on Delhi–Melbourne is not occurring in a vacuum. Over the past decade, air services between India and Australia have expanded steadily, underpinned by more liberal bilateral agreements and robust growth in both tourism and business travel. Even pre‑pandemic, India was among Australia’s fastest‑growing inbound markets, and long‑term projections by tourism bodies have pointed to Indian visitor numbers surpassing 600,000 annually by the latter part of this decade.
At the same time, the Indian diaspora in Australia has grown rapidly, particularly in Victoria and New South Wales. Melbourne’s western and northern suburbs now host large Indian communities, driving year‑round demand for visiting‑friends‑and‑relatives travel in both directions. Universities across Australia have also seen strong uptake from Indian students, further cementing educational and cultural ties that translate directly into aviation demand.
On the trade side, India has become one of Australia’s largest partners for both goods and services. As companies deepen cross‑border supply chains in sectors such as technology, resources, education and professional services, the hunger for reliable, premium connectivity between major Indian and Australian cities has grown in tandem. Non‑stop services like Delhi–Melbourne are often the most time‑efficient links for executives shuttling between headquarters, campuses and project sites.
Governments on both sides have encouraged this growth by progressively liberalising air services arrangements, allowing carriers greater flexibility in frequencies, destinations and codeshare activity. Against this backdrop, Air India’s added premium capacity does more than just upgrade one route. It strengthens the structural connective tissue between two economies that increasingly see each other as strategic long‑term partners.
Part of a Global Fleet Revamp
The Delhi–Melbourne First Class announcement comes as Air India pushes ahead with one of the most ambitious fleet overhauls in modern aviation. The airline has embarked on a multiyear, multibillion‑dollar programme to renew and retrofit its widebody and narrowbody fleets, targeting completion of a comprehensive cabin upgrade by the latter half of this decade. This includes installing all‑new seats in every cabin, rolling out modern inflight entertainment, and introducing inflight connectivity across much of the network.
On the widebody side, Air India has taken delivery of new Airbus A350‑900s, deploying them initially on key North American routes from Delhi and then progressively on other long‑haul sectors. The airline has also been inducting additional Boeing 777‑200LR and 777‑300ER aircraft with upgraded interiors, some sourced from other carriers but integrated into a unified Air India product vision. A detailed retrofit schedule is under way for legacy 777 and 787 aircraft, extending through the late 2020s.
Narrowbodies have not been neglected. By late 2025, Air India reported completion of a major retrofit of its legacy A320neo fleet, with more than one hundred A320 family aircraft now carrying refreshed cabins, new seats and the airline’s updated livery. Subsidiary Air India Express is similarly reconfiguring its Boeing 737 MAX fleet to a standardised all‑Economy layout, boosting capacity on short‑haul leisure and labour routes while simplifying operations.
Seen in this context, the 777 upgrade for Delhi–Melbourne is one piece of a carefully sequenced global puzzle. As new and refurbished aircraft come online, Air India is redeploying them to what it views as strategic markets, including North America, Europe and now Australia. The carrier’s management has consistently signalled that passengers in these markets can expect to see a steady, tangible improvement in both hardware and service over the next several years, rather than sporadic one‑off changes.
Competitive Dynamics and Passenger Choice
For travellers, the arrival of First Class on Delhi–Melbourne will broaden the spectrum of choice in both directions. India‑based passengers heading to Australia will no longer need to backtrack through Gulf or Southeast Asian hubs if they want top‑tier luxury, while Australians flying to India for business or leisure will have a non‑stop option that competes credibly with one‑stop alternatives where First Class is available.
At the same time, the change puts pressure on competitors. Gulf carriers over Melbourne, notably Emirates and Qatar Airways, have built strong followings with lavish premium cabins and dense global networks. Singapore Airlines and other Asian full‑service carriers also compete aggressively on both product and schedule. Air India’s 777 upgrade does not erase those advantages, but it narrows the gap and gives the airline a stronger hand in negotiating with travel management companies and corporate accounts.
For premium leisure travellers, particularly those visiting family or exploring India’s expanding tourism offerings, the combination of non‑stop convenience and elevated cabin comfort on Air India could be compelling. In recent years, more travellers have been willing to pay for Business or Premium Economy on long‑haul flights, especially when travelling with children or older relatives. The presence of First Class adds an aspirational tier for milestone trips, honeymoon travel or high‑net‑worth individuals.
Economy passengers may benefit indirectly as well. Increased capacity on the 777 can alleviate seat shortages during peak seasons such as the Indian wedding months, year‑end holidays and Australian university intake periods. It also opens up possibilities for more competitive pricing or last‑minute availability, even if load factors remain high overall due to strong underlying demand.
What the Upgrade Means for the Future of the Route
Looking ahead, Air India’s decision to anchor Delhi–Melbourne with a First Class‑equipped 777 suggests strong confidence in the route’s long‑term economics. Upgauging to a larger aircraft with a higher proportion of premium seats is only sustainable if the airline believes corporate contracts, high‑yield leisure demand and connecting traffic via Delhi will fill those cabins at profitable fares.
The move also hints at how Air India may view Australia more broadly. If the Melbourne experiment proves successful, it would not be surprising to see further product enhancements on Sydney services, additional frequencies or new points in Australia and New Zealand brought into the network over time, especially as more new‑generation widebodies arrive. With India investing in its own airport infrastructure and hub capabilities, Delhi and Mumbai are well positioned to serve as efficient one‑stop gateways between Australasia, Europe and North America.
For policy‑makers and tourism authorities, the upgrade underlines the importance of continued collaboration on air services, infrastructure and marketing. High‑quality non‑stop links can stimulate not only visitor flows but also trade, education and cultural exchange. When those links are backed by competitive, modern aircraft and a coherent product strategy, they become powerful enablers of broader bilateral ambitions.
For now, the most immediate impact will be felt by travellers on the ground in Delhi and Melbourne when the first First Class‑equipped 777 takes to the skies on 1 July 2026. For them, the India–Australia corridor is about to feel more luxurious, more competitive and more connected than ever.