Air India Fly Prior: How to Catch an Earlier Flight for Free

If you've ever reached the airport way too early for your Air India flight and wished you could just hop on an earlier one, there's actually a way to do that. It's called Fly Prior.

What is Fly Prior?

Fly Prior lets you switch to an earlier flight on the same day, same route, and same cabin class - as long as there's availability on the earlier flight.

So if you're booked on the 6pm Delhi-Mumbai and you get to the airport by 2pm, you can request to move to an earlier departure. No need to wait around for hours if there's a seat on an earlier flight.

How much does it cost?

Air India has split this into two pricing zones:

✈️ Zone 1 (Major metros): ₹2,199

✈️ Zone 2 (Other cities): ₹1,499

But here's the good part - if you're a Maharaja Club Gold or Platinum member, Fly Prior is completely free. One more reason to work towards that status if you fly Air India regularly.

Where can you use it?

A few conditions to keep in mind:

✅ Only available for domestic flights
✅ Only at Air India-operated airports (not codeshare partners)
✅ You have to request it at the airport before your original flight departs
✅ Works for same-day travel only

What about infants? If you're traveling with an infant, they're included in your Fly Prior fee. No extra charge for them.

What's NOT included

There are a few limitations:

✅ You can't change your cabin class (economy stays economy, business stays business)
✅ You can't change your route
✅ Some add-ons don't transfer over - things like special meals or preferred seat selection might not carry over to the new flight

Is it worth it?

If your time is valuable and you're stuck at the airport with hours to kill, ₹1,499-2,199 to get home earlier is pretty reasonable. And if you're a Maharaja Club Gold/Platinum member, it's a no-brainer since it's free.

Just remember - it's subject to availability, so there's no guarantee the earlier flight will have space. But worth asking at the counter if you're in a rush.