On Saturday, Air India took delivery of its first A350-900! The aircraft arrived in Delhi at around 13:15. The aircraft, registered as VT-JRA, departed from Toulouse-Blagnac Airport’s (TLS) runway 32R at 01:30, bound for Indira Gandhi International Airport (DEL). The aircraft became one of the most tracked flights on FlightRadar24, with nearly 6,700 viewers at one point.

India’s first A350 flew over Italy, the Adriatic Sea, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, and the Black Sea before turning slightly south, flying over Georgia, Azerbaijan, the Caspian Sea, and Iran before reaching its destination, Delhi. The journey lasted just under 8 hours.

The plane was originally ordered by Russian carrier Aeroflot, but was eventually moved to Air India due to the war in Ukraine posing a ban on aircraft deliveries to Russian carriers.