Mumbai: Air India plans to start more ultra-long-haul flights, mainly to US cities, as it expands its aircraft fleet with more A350s and B777s, sources said.

The Tata Group-owned airline, which is also in the process of consolidating its operations including through a proposed merger with Vistara, is looking to introduce direct flights from Indian cities to Seattle, Los Angeles and Dallas, the sources said.

Currently, Air India is the only Indian airline offering flights to the US with flights to Washington, New York, Newark, San Francisco and Chicago.

The sources told that Air India plans to start flights to Seattle, Los Angeles and Dallas in the 2024-25 winter schedule.

While the A350 will likely be used for flights to Seattle, the B777 could be used for flights to Los Angeles and Dallas.

These are ultra-long-haul flights, which usually last more than 16 hours.

The Air India spokesman did not comment on the plans.

In addition to flights to US cities, Air India is considering all B777 flights from Delhi and Mumbai to London Heathrow once two more of these aircraft join its fleet.

Currently, flights to London are operated from Delhi and Mumbai using the B787.

According to the sources, the airline will start flights from Bengaluru to London Gatwick next month using a Boeing Dreamliner.

An airline official said that while the introduction of flights to new destinations was always on the radar, it would also depend on various factors, including the availability of pilots and crew members.

Last year, Air India ordered 470 aircraft from Airbus and Boeing.

-B