Aboard the Airbus A220 Inaugural Flight on Delta
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There's no two ways about it — the A220 is a big deal for aviation. Today, Delta became the first North American airline to begin passenger service with the newest, smallest member of the Airbus family, the A220-100, shuttling bleary-eyed customers from New York's LaGuardia (LGA) to Boston (BOS) and Dallas–Fort Worth (DFW).
Not only is this bird the most fuel-efficient and quietest aircraft in the Delta fleet, but it also features the widest Main Cabin seating across all of Delta's birds, an all-new wireless IFE system powered by Gogo Vision Touch, high-speed 2Ku WiFi and overhead bins big enough to actually put your suitcase in.
We arrived early at LaGuardia's Terminal C to take part in the inaugural festivities, which were pushed from Jan. 31, 2019 due to the government shutdown. Given that the ribbon-cutting ceremony began at around 5:15am, a surprising number of passengers came out with spirits high to enjoy the breakfast spread and share AvGeek stories with one another.
Passengers from the first A220 flight out of LGA — a 6:00am departure to Boston (BOS) — mingled with those who arrived early for their 7:45am departure to Dallas–Fort Worth (DFW) on Delta's newest A220, N104DU, delivered on Dec. 31, 2018.
I flew to Dallas on that aircraft in Comfort+, and returned to New York on the same plane (and with the same cabin crew) in first class. You can expect reviews of both cabins soon, but the long and short of it is this: there's really no comparison between the other regional jets Delta and others fly — the CRJ700, CRJ900 and Embraer 175 and 190 — when matched against the A220.
This plane is the new de facto king of regional flying, providing a roomy, modern environment with a best-in-class seatback entertainment system to serve medium-haul routes in the 900 to 1,400 mile range.
While you wait for the full reviews, be sure to check our extensive coverage of Delta's newest aircraft below.
- I Toured Delta's Brand New Airbus A220 — Here's What to Expect
- Here's What We Learned From Delta's Product Developer for the A220
- Delta Confirms Its First A220 Destinations: Widebody Amenities on Narrowbody Routes
You can book tickets using both cash and SkyMiles on the two existing routes (LGA–BOS and LGA-DFW), which Delta serves with a total of 4 Airbus A220s, as well as these future confirmed routes. Delta's future A220 fleet will consist of 40 A220-100 series aircraft and the remaining 50 will be the larger A220-300 variant. Delta anticipates taking its first delivery of the A220-300 in 2020, with all 90 A220s to be delivered by the end of 2023.
Before booking, make sure to pore over our guide to the best credit cards for Delta loyalists.
| Delta A220 Route | In-Service |
|---|---|
New York (LGA) to Boston (BOS) | From Feb. 7, 2019 |
New York (LGA) to Dallas-Ft. Worth (DFW) | From Feb. 7, 2019 |
Detroit (DTW) to Dallas-Ft. Worth (DFW) | March |
New York (LGA) to Houston (IAH) | April |
Salt Lake City (SLC) to Dallas-Ft. Worth (DFW) | May |
Minneapolis (MSP) to Dallas-Ft. Worth (DFW) | June |
Houston (IAH) to Detroit (DTW) | July |
Houston (IAH) to Minneapolis (MSP) | July |
Houston (IAH) to Salt Lake City (SLC) | July |
New York (JFK) to Dallas-Ft. Worth (DFW) | August |
Delta A220-100 Highlights
- 109 seats total, including seating for 12 in First Class, 15 in Delta Comfort+ and 82 in Main Cabin
- State-of-the-art interior featuring Gogo 2Ku Wi-Fi, personal power ports at each seat and complimentary premium entertainment on individual seatback screens
- The widest Main Cabin seats (18.6") in Delta's entire fleet
- First class seats feature a width of 20.5"
- Seat pitch: 37" (first class); 34" (Comfort+); 30-32" (Main Cabin)
- 2-2 layout in first class; 3-2 layout in economy cabin
- High-capacity overhead bins, extra-large windows and full-spectrum LED ambient lighting
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