I flew economy on Air India's old Boeing 777-300ER for 15 hours. The broken seat, light, and TV made for a rough journey.

The Tata Group originally founded Air India in 1932 before the airline was nationalized in 1953.

The Tatas, however, bought back Air India in 2021 in a full-circle moment and have vowed to restore its reputation, starting with a record 470-aircraft order for new Airbus and Boeing planes and a $400 million cabin retrofit — which can't come soon enough after my recent economy flight.

Reuters reported many of Air India's seats were in bad condition, while The New York Times described poor customer service and reliability over the years.

Similar bad reviews were written about Air India's legacy business class, which sports an uncomfortable 2×3×2 layout with no privacy.

This configuration means passengers could still be assigned the dreaded middle seat — and the window and middle seat travelers wouldn't have direct aisle access.

I managed to secure an aisle on my business class trek to India, and, despite concerns, the flight ended up not being as bad as I expected.

The late-night flight time didn't bother me because I figured I could kill the first few hours by sleeping, and I came prepared with a small pillow and blanket.

In total, the jet would fly about 15 hours, including across Russia — meaning the flight time is at least an hour shorter than American Airlines' route that doesn't cross Russian air space, according to FlightAware.

After standing in the dedicated economy line with little movement for 15 minutes, I worried about the time as I still needed to clear security and passport control.

Stressed, I found a nearby employee and asked if he could help, given I didn't have any luggage to check. He eventually found a free agent willing to help who printed my boarding pass in less than two minutes, and I was on my way — one crisis averted.

Check-in for my business class flight from New York to India the week prior was expedited thanks to the dedicated check-in lines for premium passengers.

I enjoyed a drink at the Irish pub in the terminal before walking 10 minutes to gate 26B.

There was another layer of security in which my bags and person were checked one last time before entering the sitting area by the gate.

Having worked in the airline industry before becoming an aviation reporter, I know delays happen and do not give much thought to an extra one-hour sit — though I'll admit the late-night hour during this particular delay made it difficult to stay awake.

We didn't take off until around 3:15 a.m.

Air India's legacy economy product is extremely old, and many online reports have noted seats being flimsy and dirty and sometimes held together by duct tape.

I actually found this to be true on my business class flight as the aisle seat next to me had tape on the side, and my chair's own power outlet wasn't working.

Regardless of where I tapped or the buttons I pushed, the TV stayed frozen on the home screen for 15 hours.

After I realized my TV was broken, I walked through the cabin to see how many others were out. I counted at least 15 screens stuck on a white loading page, including the person directly across from me.

When asked, a flight attendant told me that affected passengers could reach out to Air India after the flight to request compensation.

Knowing there was a chance my television could fail, I downloaded enough content to keep me entertained for days. This mostly included podcasts and bingeable TV shows like Survivor and NCIS.

My portable charger was, unfortunately, already more than half-dead by the time I boarded, so I was careful with my aging iPhone's battery life when watching shows.

I also had to save battery for things like podcasts and Spotify when trying to sleep — I can't just listen to the sounds of the cabin.

The book was particularly helpful when my phone was out of reach charging at another passenger's seat, who was nice enough to let me use their USB when they weren't.

There was no external button on the ceiling for a reading light, so I had to rely on my phone's screen. I propped the phone against my chest, facing the book, and maxed out the brightness.

It wasn't perfect, but it worked well enough, and I could see the pages without getting a headache — but it was yet another thing that killed my phone battery.

There was a lot of time to kill between Delhi and New Jersey, and I wanted to sleep as much as possible to avoid boredom.

Out of the 15 hours, I managed to sleep for about six in between meals, reading, and watching shows.

The main amenities I rely on for entertainment — the TV and charging ports — were broken, but there were some aspects about the product that were good.

The legroom is on par with competitors like United Airlines, which boasts 31 inches in economy. And Air India's seat width is 18 inches, per SeatGuru — more than United's 17.3 inches.

Not to mention, the 33 inches of pitch on some rows on Air India is higher than Emirates' 32 inches throughout its Boeing 777-300ER economy cabin.

The business class seatback pocket was just one giant slot, while the one in economy had smaller slots attached to the main pocket for better organization. There was also a slot under the TV, where I kept my book.

I preferred the economy version, which reminded me of similar one I've found on airlines like ANA and Singapore.

When I fly, I always bring a big water bottle to stay hydrated, and sometimes, there isn't a good place to store it in economy.

I was happy Air India's big mesh cupholder held my bottle with no issues.

I normally see footrests in premium economy rather than in regular economy.

This is true on recent flights I've taken with United and Singapore Airlines, for example.

Although I will complain about the broken TV, I will credit the seat's comfort. The cushions are plush, and I found the seat roomy with good legroom and width.

I prefer it to the harder and slimmer seats installed on competing airlines.

The wings of the headrest did not stay folded in, so it was as if it wasn't even there. I typically don't care about the seat's padding as long as the headrest works, so this was probably one of the biggest annoyances.

I ended up mostly resting on the tray table to sleep.

The soft product is anything not physically attached to the aircraft, such as the food, service, linens, and amenity kit.

While new management, which officially took over in January 2022, needs time to improve Air India's poor onboard product, it has added nice touches where it can.

The pillow and blanket were fine, though the pillowcase could be softer. I still recommend bringing your own linens.

The first meal was served about an hour after takeoff, and I only nibbled on it as I wasn't that hungry given the 4 a.m. hour.

I found the pastry tasty enough for economy food.

Served around five hours into the flight, the breakfast was tasty and filling, and I was happy a Western option was available.

I paired the meal with coffee and water.

The entrée was my favorite of all the food onboard. It was well-cooked and flavorful. The side dishes were good, too.

Other dinner options included a vegetarian meal or pasta.

Throughout the ultra-long-haul journey, I mostly slept and read — watching TV shows during meals when I felt confident my phone wouldn't get close to dying.

I expected a poor product but didn't expect to have the most important amenities completely broken.

If I didn't plan ahead and pre-download shows, movies, podcasts, and music, remember to pack a book (as someone who doesn't read often) and stock up on melatonin, then I can't imagine how I would've entertained myself.

My one mistake was not making sure my portable charger was fully juiced up by the time I got to the airport — lesson learned.

I didn't dislike the design of the seat itself. It's dated and in need of modern touches, but I loved the legroom, seat cushions, and big cupholder.

The problem was the state of the seat. The headrest was broken, and the tray table wasn't properly secured to the seatback. In fact, the tray in the middle seat next to me was held together by tape.

Air India launched its first-ever Airbus A350 in January, which features new business, premium economy, and regular coach seats that are a night-and-day difference from its legacy 777 product.

Economy televisions have been upgraded, and Air India has kept the cupholder idea while adding more power outlets. I did not notice a footrest or think the seats felt as padded as the legacy version — but they were still comfortable.

For example, some customers — like those flying from San Francisco to Delhi — may get lucky with Delta's much nicer economy experience.

Travelers can check the plane they're on before booking by looking at the reservation or using websites like FlightAware.

"By the end of 2025, the entire legacy widebody fleet will also be upgraded to match what we're getting on the A350," Air India's new CEO, Campbell Wilson, told Business Insider in January. "So, essentially, our fleet will be completely reborn by then."