LONDON- British Airways (BA) has scaled back its planned schedule for flights from London to Delhi in 2025 due to ongoing issues with the Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines that power its Boeing 787 aircraft.
The airline’s latest schedule reveals that instead of the anticipated three daily flights, it will operate only two per day between London Heathrow Airport (LHR) and Delhi Indira Gandhi International Airport (DEL).
British Airways London to Delhi Flight
Data from aviation analytics firm Cirium shows that British Airways had scheduled 14 weekly flights on this route between April and October 2024.
However, between April and October 2025, British Airways will reduce this to a twice-daily service, utilizing the Boeing 787-8 for the London-to-Delhi route.
For the winter season, spanning October 2024 to March 2025, British Airways plans to deploy a mix of Airbus A350-1000, Boeing 777-200ER, Boeing 787-8, and Boeing 787-9 aircraft for flights between London-Heathrow and Delhi.
An industry expert noted that Virgin Atlantic plans to ground two of its 17 Boeing 787-9s due to continued issues and delays with Rolls-Royce’s Trent 1000 engine.
This situation led to the moves by British Airways, ANA, Ethiopian, Thai, and recently LATAM to switch to the General Electric GEnx engine for their 787 fleets despite being longtime Rolls-Royce customers.
The expert expressed skepticism about the Trent 1000’s future, highlighting that few airlines, besides Lufthansa, seem willing to stick with the engine.
This challenge for Rolls-Royce echoes Boeing’s struggles, with both companies facing backlash from customers over reliability issues.
Also Read British Airways Last Airbus A380 Flight from Dallas Grounded
India: A focus Market for British Airways
British Airways plans to add over 35 new long-haul aircraft to bolster its international network, with a strategic focus on expanding in the Indian market. Recognizing India’s relatively low air travel per capita compared to China, the airline sees significant growth potential in the region.
Celebrating 100 years of operations in India, British Airways has evolved from 14-day flights between London and Delhi in the 1920s to today’s direct eight-and-a-half-hour routes. The airline currently operates about 50 weekly flights to India and aims to exceed pre-pandemic capacity levels by 2025.
As India ranks as British Airways’ second-largest market, the airline leverages robust UK-India trade and diaspora connections, employing 2,500 people in India and recently opening Engagement Centres in Noida to support local operations.
British Airways’ growth strategy prioritizes expanding Delhi services and positioning itself as a leading connector between India and North America. The airline links 31 U.S. cities via London Heathrow, maintaining Europe’s largest network to India and the most comprehensive London-U.S. route system.
In line with this market focus, British Airways has introduced authentic Indian cuisine on flights to the UK, US, and Canada, offering dishes like lamb curry and coconut rice.
Additionally, it has expanded its in-flight entertainment with over 100 Indian films, including classics such as “The Burning Train” and “Dil Chahta Hai,” aiming to enrich passengers’ experience with a broad representation of Indian culture.
No Cuts to Other Indian Cities
On June 5, British Airways announced a new daily flight from London to Delhi starting April 20, 2025, expanding its schedule with seven additional weekly flights. This brings the airline’s total weekly flights to India to 56, including three daily flights to Mumbai, and daily flights to Chennai, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad.
Current schedules show no cuts for flights to these other Indian destinations, Simple Flying reported.
British Airways Chief Planning and Strategy Officer Neil Chernoff highlighted the expansion as part of the airline’s centenary celebrations of flying to India, describing Delhi as a vital connection point for travelers heading to London Heathrow and onward to over 200 destinations worldwide.
However, recent cuts to British Airways’ planned schedules reflect ongoing issues with the Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines that power its Boeing 787s.
These engine supply challenges from Rolls-Royce have led the airline to cancel planned flights to Bahrain and Kuwait, suspend its London Gatwick–New York JFK route until March 2025, and delay new services to Kuala Lumpur.
The supply shortages have also prompted British Airways to temporarily withdraw flights to Dallas/Fort Worth, potentially only for the summer season of 2025, and reduce its planned two daily flights to Miami International Airport.
Feature Image by Sandeep (@atc.spotter)
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