Air India plane tail

Tail of the Air India plane on the next gate.

Air India is the national flag carrier of India with a worldwide network of passenger and cargo services. It is the only state-owned airline in the country, having recently merged with Indian Airlines. Its main bases are Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai and Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi. The airline connects 146 international and domestic destinations around the world, including 12 gateways in India with Air India Express, a fully-owned subsidiary of Air India. The airline will join the Star Alliance and has ordered 27(7 options) Boeing 787-8 to be delivered in 2008-2009.

Air India's livery is mostly in red and white. The bottom of the aircraft remains unpainted metal but the upper portion is given a white background with the airline's name in red. The name is in Hindi on one side and in English on the other. The red palace surround to the windows refer to the slogan "your palace in the sky" which is written on the back of the aircraft. Planes are named after Indian kings or landmarks. The tail is mostly red with the carrier's name written in Hindi on one side and English on the other.