In the next three years, i.e. by 2027, Air India expects to have 400 aircraft in its fleet according to the airline's chief executive officer, Campbell Wilson. 

Speaking to reporters at a media briefing in Delhi, Wilson said that the airline anticipates most of its traffic to come from domestic and short haul international routes just as new narrowbody aircraft will join the fleet. The CEO also stressed that the airline is facing significant delays in its retrofit program of its legacy fleet mostly due to supply chain constraints. Due to the delay the airline anticipates that the retrofit of the airline's new and legacy fleet initially planned at $400 million will cost more than the allocated amount. 

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He further clarified that the retrofit of Air India's Boeing 787 aircraft will begin in April 2025 after installation and certification. The first of these aircraft will return to service in the last quarter of 2025 while the Boeing 777 will undergo a refresh in 2025 before it goes to full retrofit in 2026. 

"We had hoped to start retrofitting 787s and 777s by now. Unfortunately, the global supply chains in some areas are still recovering and seats in particular are a challenge...Once it (retrofit) starts in 2025, we will be doing 3-4 aircraft every month until the full legacy 40 wide-body aircraft are completed," Wilson said.

The retrofit program is primarily focused on 40 legacy wide-body aircraft, including the Boeing 777 and Boeing 787 aircraft. These old aircraft from the government-owned era needs major upgrades with regards to international standards and enhanced passenger experience 

Currently, the total fleet strength of Air India Group, including Air India Express, is around 300 aircraft. As of now, the Air India group has a domestic market share of around 29% and 55% on the metro-to-metro routes.

On top 120 domestic routes, the market share is about 40%. 

Wilson further noted a delay in getting the 50 white tail aircraft that were expected to join the fleet by December this year. Out of the total 50 white tail Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, 35 have joined the fleet and are operated by Air India Express.