Move over (beloved) Maharaja, it’s now the age of The Vista. Yes, decades after the Indian government nationalised the airline from the Tatas, the Tatas finally have their airline back. They have been itching since then to refurbish the much-battered image of the airline and 10 August proved to be the day the airline came out with some announcements regarding the overhaul. The rebrand goes much beyond the logo though. “We are in the midst of a total transformation to re-imagine the role of India’s flagship airline,” reveals Campbell Wilson, CEO & MD, Air India. Irrespective of whether it is still the flag carrier or not, the planned changes include new aircraft livery, new look cabins for all the classes, a phased launch of new Air India website, mobile app, loyalty programme, with a new ‘open all hours, every day’ customer contact centre in nine Indian and foreign languages by the end of this year, as well as a completely redesigned loyalty programme in early 2024 that will enable thousands of new redemption possibilities. Air India had earlier announced a major five-year transformation roadmap. Describing the overhaul as a ‘national mission’, N. Chandrasekaran, chairman, Tata Sons, said: “We have been at work during the last 15 months or so on this journey – because our mission is to make this airline world-class in terms of modernity, safety, technologically most advanced, exceptional in terms of customer service and an experience that Air India used to be known for”. He admitted however that “This requires enormous amounts of work – on technology, fleet, maintenance, ground handling, all aspects of operations, and more”. Though he pointed out that the airline had placed a historic order for new planes, they would take time to arrive, he admitted. In what will possibly be the biggest relief for flyers, the airline’s fleet upgradation has already begun, with the airline leasing and buying 20 wide-body aircraft this year, including planes from Singapore Airlines and ex-Etihad. A $400 million programme to completely refurbish the interiors of its legacy fleet of 43 wide-body aircraft commences mid-2024, which will lead to the installation of brand-new seats in every cabin, new in-flight entertainment systems and in-flight Wi-Fi internet connectivity.