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Aviation Source • Len Varley

Air India completes first 787-8 cabin retrofit, with 26 refurbished Dreamliners set to enter long-haul service

Air India’s first fully retrofitted Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner (VT-ANT) has arrived in Delhi after a non-stop ferry flight from California, completing the cabin refresh for the first of 26 aircraft. The update adds new business-class suites, premium economy, and a revised livery ahead of UK, Europe, US and Far East deployments.

2026-04-13T15:14:42.035228-07:00

Skift

Etihad to quintuples mainland China presence with five new routes, adding 28 weekly flights to reach 35

2026-04-13T04:08:04.330609-07:00

Leeham News

Boeing product roadmap signals next-new-airplane direction: thin-wing and open/ducted-fan propulsion concepts

2026-04-13T00:23:18.905138-07:00

Air Data News

Tupolev unveils Tu-454 widebody long-haul concept with PD-26 engine plan

2026-04-12T04:33:27.158291-07:00

News Timeline

Aviation Source

Air India completes first 787-8 cabin retrofit, with 26 refurbished Dreamliners set to enter long-haul service Air India’s first fully retrofitted Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner (VT-ANT) has arrived in Delhi after a non-stop ferry flight from California, completing the cabin refresh for the first of 26 aircraft. The update adds new business-class suites, premium economy, and a revised livery ahead of UK, Europe, US and Far East deployments.

2026-04-13T15:14:42.035228-07:00

Air India completes first 787-8 cabin retrofit, with 26 refurbished Dreamliners set to enter long-haul service

Skift

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Etihad to quintuples mainland China presence with five new routes, adding 28 weekly flights to reach 35 Etihad Airways says it will scale its mainland China network from one destination to six, introducing daily service to Shanghai Pudong from October. It will add routes to Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Shandong and Chengdu in March, increasing capacity by 28 weekly flights to 35 weekly total.

2026-04-13T04:08:04.330609-07:00

Etihad to quintuples mainland China presence with five new routes, adding 28 weekly flights to reach 35

Leeham News

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Boeing product roadmap signals next-new-airplane direction: thin-wing and open/ducted-fan propulsion concepts Boeing Commercial Airplanes executives discussed technologies shaping the company’s “next new airplane,” focusing on aerodynamic efficiency (including a thin-wing approach) and propulsion concepts such as open-fan and ducted-fan architectures. The work underscores how propulsion and airframe integration may define the next step in aircraft economics.

2026-04-13T00:23:18.905138-07:00

Boeing product roadmap signals next-new-airplane direction: thin-wing and open/ducted-fan propulsion concepts

Air Data News

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Tupolev unveils Tu-454 widebody long-haul concept with PD-26 engine plan Tupolev has presented the Tu-454, a twin-engine long-haul widebody concept positioned between the Boeing 787 and Airbus A350, targeting about 250–350 passengers. The project was shown alongside an expectation it will use the PD-26 engines under development, but technical detail and timelines remain limited.

2026-04-12T04:33:27.158291-07:00

Tupolev unveils Tu-454 widebody long-haul concept with PD-26 engine plan

FlightGlobal

White House FY2027 request puts Boeing’s F-47 NGAD on a near-term path: prototype flight in 2028 as F/A-XX slips The White House’s fiscal year 2027 budget request reiterates commitment to fielding a US Air Force sixth-generation fighter, with Boeing tasked to fly an F-47 prototype in 2028. The materials also indicate the parallel F/A-XX effort is lagging, even as Washington frames NGAD as an “air dominance” paradigm shift.

2026-04-10T14:24:07.465746-07:00

White House FY2027 request puts Boeing’s F-47 NGAD on a near-term path: prototype flight in 2028 as F/A-XX slips

Defense Daily

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U.S. Army awards Lockheed Martin $4.76B PAC-3 MSE contract to accelerate Patriot interceptor production The U.S. government awarded Lockheed Martin a $4.7 billion undefinitized/premilinary contract to produce Patriot Advanced Capability-3 Missile Segment Enhancement (PAC-3 MSE) interceptors, advancing accelerated output under a contract action described as a key production ramp. Lockheed had targeted raising annual PAC-3 interceptor output from ~600 to 2,000 over seven years.

2026-04-09T14:39:16.098317-07:00

U.S. Army awards Lockheed Martin $4.76B PAC-3 MSE contract to accelerate Patriot interceptor production

FlightGlobal

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Persistent GEnx engine fire aboard United 787-9 resisted onboard extinguishers and damaged surrounding components Last month a fire inside the left GE Aerospace GEnx turbofan on a United Airlines Boeing 787-9 continued burning despite crew discharging onboard extinguisher bottles. The persistent blaze damaged components surrounding the engine, according to post-incident examination, raising questions about in-flight engine fire suppression effectiveness.

2026-04-09T11:36:17.854583-07:00

Persistent GEnx engine fire aboard United 787-9 resisted onboard extinguishers and damaged surrounding components

Airways Magazine

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Alaska begins 787 proving flights to Europe ahead of Seattle–Rome launch Alaska Airlines has begun operating empty Boeing 787 validation flights to Europe as it finalizes preparations for inaugural Seattle–Rome service. The non‑revenue proving runs are being used to validate aircraft systems, crew procedures and route operations ahead of commercial launch.

2026-04-09T11:19:42.081189-07:00

Alaska begins 787 proving flights to Europe ahead of Seattle–Rome launch

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Boeing News

Air India completes first 787-8 cabin retrofit, with 26 refurbished Dreamliners set to enter long-haul service

Etihad to quintuples mainland China presence with five new routes, adding 28 weekly flights to reach 35

Boeing product roadmap signals next-new-airplane direction: thin-wing and open/ducted-fan propulsion concepts

Tupolev unveils Tu-454 widebody long-haul concept with PD-26 engine plan

News Timeline