Delta’s long wait for its first A220 is nearly over: the first of 75 is out of the paint shop and soon to start flight testing before joining the airline early next year.
It’s been a complicated story. The planes, originally designated as the Bombardier CSeries, are designed to fill a gap in the market, with seating between about 100 and 130 seats. Delta wanted them to replace its aging MD80s, and Bombardier needed the order to keep the line’s hopes alive. Delta was the first North American carrier to order the plane.
Last year, Pres. Trump threatened to hit the deal with a 300% tariff, delaying Delta’s order when it said it could no pay that price. Airbus and Bombardier did a deal for Airbus to take over the line and market it, and to build some of the planes in the U.S. The tariffs were eventually overruled.
“There’s nothing like seeing years of planning come together in the shape of a freshly painted aircraft,” Larry Cato, a program manager on Delta’s Fleet Management team, said in a statement. “It’s a major milestone for the future of our fleet.”
