On Friday, Delta announced the inaugural routes for their new state of the art Airbus A220 aircraft. Delta will be the first US airline to take delivery of the A220, and routes will be available for sale starting Saturday, October 13th.
“This aircraft is the culmination of years of listening to our customers and responding with design innovations that continue to improve Delta's domestic in-flight experience,” said Tim Mapes, S.V.P. and Chief Marketing Officer. “From high-resolution seat-back entertainment screens to the widest Main Cabin seats in our fleet, the A220 will deliver an experience our customers will look forward to every time they fly.”
Routes featuring the Airbus A220 that will be available for sale Oct. 13th are listed as follows:
Delta A220-100 Highlights
The Airbus A220 will be replacing less-efficient aircraft and will be deployed on short- to medium-haul routes. Since 2009, Delta has retired 280 50-seat regional jets and more than 130 older, narrowbody aircraft. Their order of A220s is part of an effort to refresh their fleet with over 300 new aircraft.
The A220 will include 109 seats with 12 in First Class, 15 in Delta Comfort+ and 82 in the main cabin. The aircraft has the widest seats of any narrowbody aircraft.
It will be equipped with high-capacity overhead bins, extra-large windows and full-spectrum LED ambient lighting. Not to mention, Delta's 2Ku high-speed Wi-Fi service and state of the art seat-back screens. Something other domestic airlines like American are removing from their cabins.
Our Analysis
Delta has ordered 75 Airbus A220 aircraft (formerly the Bombardier C series) and has an option to order 50 more. While other domestic carriers like American are taking in-flight amenities like seatback entertainment away, Delta is investing in the customer. They continue to lead the industry in this category and it isn't even close.
Say what you want about the Delta SkyMiles program, but it is hard to argue with the fact that Delta has the best onboard experience of any domestic carrier.
Bottom Line
This is an exciting update on the Delta A220 journey. All of the inaugural A220 flights will be available for sale tomorrow (10/13/18). While only a handful of routes that will operate the A220 initially, it is likely more routes will be announced soon.
Lead Photo (CC BY 2.0):Â Â Delta News Hub via Flickr
Cannot say this is better than jet blue: widest and most comfortable seats, satellite tv and phenomenal customer service. Delta is my second choice. They’re definitely improving so it’s great to have 2 airlines committed to customer service. Steve from Boston