British Airways has said it plans to introduce a third daily flight from London Heathrow to Delhi, subject to regulatory and capacity approval.
In addition, the airline’s popular first cabin will return on flights from London to Mumbai this month, and its business class “club suite” cabin will be offered on select flights across all five Indian routes by the end of 2026.
The plans are designed to facilitate closer ties between the two countries, following the signing of a landmark Free Trade Agreement in July.
Following the announcement of the plans, British Airways flew UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer to India on a trade mission.
The prime minister was accompanied by around 130 UK CEOs and senior government ministers, including Sean Doyle, chair and CEO of British Airways.
“I am delighted to take part in this important trade mission,” said Doyle. “Our ties with India were established over 100 years ago, and today we have around 2,500 British Airways colleagues based there.
“We’ve been steadily increasing capacity between the UK and India over the years, and we’re now operating 56 direct services to five Indian cities each week.”
British Airways said it will continue to invest in its overall customer experience, and has already rolled out over 900 initiatives as part of a £7bn ($9.4bn) transformation plan.
These include brand-new short-haul seats, free Wi-Fi messaging on board, and refurbishing lounges across its global network.