Air India to start daily Delhi-New York service with new Boeing B777-200LR

New Delhi: Air India has inducted the fourth Boeing 777-200LR (Long Range) aircraft in its fleet. The fourth Boeing 777-200LR aircraft arrived in Delhi from Seattle on 02 January 2008. The aircraft is part of the total order of 68 aircraft given by the national carrier to Boeing in December 2005.

So far, Boeing has made deliveries of 17 of the aircraft. These deliveries include four B777-200LRs, three Boeing 777-300ERs and 10 B737-800s. The 737-800s are intended for Air India Express, its budget airline.

Meanwhile, the fourth 777-200LR, a 238-seater aircraft, has been configured with eight seats in the First Class, 35 in the Executive Class and 195 seats in the Economy Class. The aircraft has been named 'Gujarat', in keeping with Air India's policy of naming the B777s after the various States of India.

The fifth B777-200LR is expected to join the fleet in February 2008.  A total of eight Boeing 777-200LRs have been ordered by Air India and the remaining three B777-200LRs are scheduled for delivery in mid 2009.

Induction of the new B777-200LR will enable Air India to launch a daily non-stop service between Delhi and New York, starting February 8, 2008.  The new service will enable travellers from Delhi to experience the same comfort and luxury as offered by Air India on its non-stop service between Mumbai and New York, which has earned the carrier uniform appreciation across the travelling spectrum.