First look: Amtrak enters a 'whole new era' with Airo trains for the Cascades, Northeast Regional
Amtrak riders in the Pacific Northwest have something big to look forward to this summer.
The railroad's new workhorse, the Airo train, will enter service mid-summer on the Cascades route that connects Oregon, Washington and British Columbia, Canada.
For riders, that means everything from new seats to plane-like amenities and even high-speed 5G Wi-Fi.
"It's like having a new car," said Mike Jenkins, passenger rail equipment manager at the Oregon Department of Transportation that partially funds the Cascades trains. "I think this is going to be a big boost to riders."
Jenkins spoke onboard one of the first Cascades Airo trains at Washington, D.C.'s Union Station on Tuesday. He was there as part of a first-look at the new trains that will not only statrt rolling out in the Pacific Northwest, but — beginning in 2027 — will replace the aging Amfleet I cars that have served the Northeast Corridor and adjacent routes for nearly five decades.
The Airo trains come just months after Amtrak debuted its long-awaited "NextGen" Acela trains between Boston, New York City and Washington, D.C.
Amtrak has 83 Airo trains — a mix of carriages and engines — on order, and the first eight are bound for the Cascades. The remaining 75 will head to the East Coast where they will become the mainstay on busy Northeast Regional trains plus numerous state-sponsored routes stretching from Maine to Georgia.
"We are in a whole new era at Amtrak," Roger Harris, the president of Amtrak, said at the event.
Airo coach class
The new Cascades Airo trains have three dedicated cars of coach class seating plus some seats in the cafe car and cab car. Seats are laid out in Amtrak's standard 2-2 coach configuration with several tables of four seats located in each car.
Each seat has its own individual reading light, a standard outlet and a USB-C plug.
Unfortunately, rather than recline, the bottom of the seats slide forward similar to those on the NextGen Acela trains. This results in less legroom when "reclined," and some taller travelers may find it uncomfortable.
The coach class cars include luggage racks and overhead shelves to store bags.
Airo business-class
Each Cascades Airo train has one business-class car with seats in Amtrak's standard 1-2 configuration. Again, there are a mix of stand-alone seats as well as ones with tables throughout the carriage.
The business-class seats have all the same amenities as their coach counterparts — personal reading lights, outlets and USB-C plugs — plus footrests. However, the seats are wider and offer more legroom.
Unfortunately, though, the bottoms of business-class seats also slide forward rather than leaning back in a reclined position.
Airo trains for the East Coast
When Amtrak's new Airo trains arrive for East Coast services, the interiors will look almost identical to the Cascades trains, according to Celia Ann Pfleckl, who leads the Airo program at the railroad. She said the only differences will be the color schemes — in other words, no Pacific Northwest forest green for the East Coast.
"I feel like it's an amazing product," Pfleckl said.
These lines will eventually see Airo trains: Adirondack, Carolinian, Downeaster, Empire Service, Ethan Allen Express, Keystone Service, Maple Leaf, Northeast Regional, Palmetto, Pennsylvanian, Valley Flyer and Vermonter.
The first Airo cars for the East Coast are scheduled to begin testing later this year for a 2027 debut.
Amtrak Airo for growth
The new Airo trains come at a time of unprecedented growth for Amtrak. The railroad marked its third straight year of ridership gains with a record 34.5 million people riding the rails in 2025.
Part of the increase is from the addition of new lines, including the new Mardi Gras service between New Orleans and Mobile, Alabama, that debuted last August and the Borealis service between Chicago and St. Paul, Minnesota, that launched in May 2024. But most of the growth came from more people riding Amtrak's existing lines.
"The new trains that are coming — the new Acelas, the new Airos — these are going to feed into this growth story and allow us to grow our ridership," Harris said on the Transit Unplugged podcast earlier in February.
On the Amtrak Cascades line, each Airo train seats up to 300 passengers compared to up to 168 today, Jason Biggs — director of the rail, freight and ports division at the Washington State Department of Transportation — said on Tuesday. The hope is that the Airo trains will push Cascades over the 1 million annual riders mark, he added.
Amtrak data shows that Cascades trains carried 951,397 people in 2025 — just over 1% more than the year prior.
