An Air India customer says they were still chasing a promised refund nearly seven weeks after flight changes forced them to cancel their tickets — a recent complaint that puts the airline’s customer service under scrutiny as it promotes an upgraded Australian operation.
In a ProductReview.com.au post referring to 29 September, the reviewer alleged a full refund had been agreed on 13 August but remained unpaid. They described spending hours pursuing the money and being referred between Air India and booking agency Aunt Betty. The account has not been independently verified, and responsibility for the alleged delay has not been established.
The complaint raises a basic question for an airline selling its transformation: how effectively does it help passengers when their journey falls apart?
At the time of checking, Air India’s ProductReview.com.au listing showed a rating of 1.5 out of five from 235 reviews, with 90 per cent classified as negative. Those voluntary reviews are not a representative survey of passengers and cover more than Australian routes. Nevertheless, they provide a public record of dissatisfaction that the airline’s makeover has yet to overcome.
An earlier complaint involving a Sydney departure illustrates how one disruption can turn into missed connections, additional flights and unexpected expenses.
A passenger travelling from Sydney to London through Delhi said Air India flight AI301 departed two hours and 49 minutes late on 12 August 2025, causing them to miss their onward connection.
In a complaint posted on ComplaintsBoard on 19 August, the traveller alleged they then spent three hours in a holding room at Delhi Airport without assistance or updates before being rerouted through Amsterdam.
They said they eventually reached Heathrow that evening, too late for their planned lift home, and incurred hotel, taxi and train costs. The website labels the reviewer a verified customer; that designation does not independently establish every allegation in the account.
The Australia Today reviewed Australian Government aviation records, Air India announcements, Indian regulatory findings and recent passenger accounts involving the airline’s Sydney and Melbourne operations.
The records show that Air India’s Sydney–Delhi service required special permission to operate beyond Sydney Airport’s night curfew on at least two occasions in 2025 after separate engineering problems.
On 14 June 2025, Air India flight AI301 from Sydney to Delhi was delayed after the Boeing 787 displayed faulty emergency lighting across rows 25 to 28.
Australian Department of Infrastructure records show engineers were required to attend the aircraft before departure.
The flight was carrying 236 passengers, including 35 wheelchair passengers, and 17 crew members.
Because the repairs pushed the departure beyond Sydney Airport’s 11 pm curfew, Air India sought a special dispensation. The aircraft eventually departed at 11.38 pm.
Less than two months later, the same Sydney–Delhi flight number faced another engineering problem.
On 12 August 2025, passengers had already boarded AI301 when an engine leak was reported.
Government records show everyone was required to leave the aircraft while engineers carried out repairs and testing.
The flight was carrying 247 passengers, including 29 wheelchair passengers, and 17 crew members.
Air India again required a Sydney curfew dispensation, with the aircraft eventually departing at 11.45 pm.
The incidents did not result in reported injuries, and the aircraft departed after engineering attention.
They nevertheless provide a documented glimpse into the operational pressures facing the airline on one of its two major Australian routes.
Passenger frustration has not been limited to Sydney.
A verified Australian passenger review published this year alleges that Air India flight AI309 from Melbourne to Delhi was cancelled on 25 March 2026 after passengers had checked in and boarded.
The passenger said travellers were seated aboard the aircraft for about two hours before the cancellation and alleged there was little immediate assistance available afterwards.
He said the alternative flight offered to him departed on 27 March, causing him to miss a medical appointment in India.
“This experience has been extremely disappointing and unprofessional,” the passenger wrote.
The account is an individual passenger complaint rather than an official regulatory finding, and The Australia Today has not independently verified the circumstances surrounding the cancellation.
Other recent Australian reviews make similar complaints about delays, communication, wheelchair assistance and the condition of older aircraft cabins.
A Victorian passenger who travelled from Delhi to Melbourne in January 2026 said a gate change created difficulties for an elderly traveller for whom wheelchair assistance had been booked.
The passenger said wheelchair support was eventually provided after the family raised concerns.
Another detailed account of the Delhi–Melbourne route in 2025 described an in-flight entertainment system that did not work, broken controls, non-functioning overhead lights and assistance buttons, and seats that would not recline properly.
The same passenger said food had improved and did not criticise the cabin crew, highlighting the inconsistent nature of Air India’s transformation rather than suggesting every part of the journey was poor.
Those complaints matter because Air India has repeatedly presented Australia as an important market in its effort to reinvent itself under Tata Group ownership.
But Australian passengers have also experienced reductions in direct services.
Following the fatal crash of Air India flight AI171 in Ahmedabad in June 2025, Air India introduced what it called a “Safety Pause”, cutting parts of its international schedule while enhanced aircraft checks were undertaken.
Delhi–Melbourne and Delhi–Sydney services were reduced from seven flights a week to five.
The airline said affected passengers would be offered rebooking, complimentary rescheduling or refunds.
Australian services were cut again in 2026.
In May, Air India announced that both Delhi–Melbourne and Delhi–Sydney would fall from seven weekly flights to four between June and August.
Air India attributed the changes to continuing airspace restrictions and record-high international jet fuel prices, saying the reductions were intended to improve network stability and reduce last-minute disruption.
That temporarily left Air India operating just eight direct Australia services a week across Melbourne and Sydney.
The Australian issues have unfolded while Air India has faced much broader regulatory scrutiny in India.
That scrutiny intensified following the June 2025 crash of AI171, a Boeing 787-8 travelling from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick.
The disaster killed 241 of the 242 people onboard and people on the ground, with the investigation into the cause continuing.
It would be wrong to link the cause of that crash to the engineering faults seen in Sydney without evidence.
Indian aviation regulators subsequently carried out enhanced surveillance of Air India’s Boeing 787 fleet and reported that they found no major safety concerns with the aircraft or maintenance systems.
However, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation also raised concerns with Air India about maintenance practices, coordination between departments and the availability of spare parts.
Separate regulatory findings concerning other Air India aircraft also raised questions about internal oversight.
In 2025, India’s aviation regulator warned Air India after finding three Airbus aircraft had operated despite mandatory inspections of emergency escape slides being overdue.
The DGCA said the cases indicated aircraft had operated with “expired or unverified emergency equipment” and criticised what it described as inadequate internal oversight.
Air India told Reuters it was accelerating verification of maintenance records.
The regulator also took action over pilot scheduling.
It ordered three Air India executives responsible for crew scheduling to be removed from their positions after what it described as “repeated and serious violations” of pilot duty-time rules involving Bengaluru–London flights.
Air India said it had implemented the regulator’s order and remained committed to full adherence to safety protocols.
Further DGCA warnings followed over fatigue management and training.
Reuters reported that the regulator raised issues including mandatory rest periods, simulator training and airport-specific training after Air India itself disclosed a series of violations.
The regulatory notices were not specifically connected to Australia, but they form part of the wider environment in which the airline is attempting to rebuild confidence internationally.
Air India has also taken substantial steps to improve its Australian product.
From 1 July 2026, the airline began deploying upgraded Boeing 777-300ER aircraft on Delhi–Melbourne services, replacing the older Boeing 787-8 product.
The aircraft introduced First Class to the route, alongside fully flat Business Class seats, Wi-Fi, upgraded entertainment and refreshed food and beverage offerings.
Air India described the move as part of its continuing transformation into a “world-class global carrier”.
The airline also said Melbourne services were scheduled to return to seven flights a week from September.
That investment creates a striking contrast.
Air India is spending heavily to present a newer, more competitive face to Australian passengers while simultaneously carrying the legacy of ageing aircraft, operational disruption and customer dissatisfaction accumulated during its transformation, and it does not mean Air India’s Australian operation is unsafe.
The Indian regulator has also specifically said it found no major safety concerns with Air India’s Boeing 787 fleet after enhanced inspections.
The issue instead appears to be one of consistency.
For Australians travelling between India and Australia, Air India has an obvious advantage: non-stop flights between Delhi and both Melbourne and Sydney, without the need to transit through Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok or the Gulf.
That convenience has made the airline important to one of Australia’s fastest-growing international travel markets.
But direct flights alone may not be enough.
An airline asking passengers to embrace its transformation must also convince them that the aircraft will depart reliably, that systems inside the cabin will work, that passengers will receive help when things go wrong and that the standards being promoted in corporate announcements are reflected consistently at the airport and onboard.
Air India’s upgraded Melbourne aircraft suggests that the airline knows its older product was no longer good enough.
Its schedule reductions suggest it also recognises that operating fewer reliable flights can be preferable to promising a timetable it cannot consistently deliver.
The question for Australian passengers is whether those changes represent the beginning of a genuinely different Air India — or whether the airline’s ambitious makeover is still running ahead of the experience passengers receive.
For now, the evidence points to both stories being true at the same time: Air India is investing heavily in improvement, while recent Australian operations continue to reveal the difficult legacy it is trying to leave behind.
Note: The Australia Today contacted Air India for comment but had not received a response at the time of publication, despite follow-up reminders. This article will be updated if Air India responds.
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