SWISS takes its 30th A220 delivery concluding its fleet renewal

SWISS took delivery of its thirtieth new Airbus A220 at Zurich Airport this week to mark a further milestone in the biggest fleet renewal programme in its corporate history. SWISS was launching carrier and first operator of the new short- and medium-haul twinjet, which was designed and developed from scratch. The Airbus A220 emits over 20 per cent less carbon dioxide than comparable aircraft types. SWISS’s thirtieth A220, a ‑300 model with the registration HB-JCU, was named ‘Davos’ following its Zurich arrival.

Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) received its thirtieth new Airbus A220 (formerly known as the Bombardier C Series) at Zurich Airport at 21:00 on Monday evening. Aircraft HB-JCU, which is an A220-300, had flown directly from Airbus Canada’s Montreal Mirabel works. Its arrival concludes SWISS’s acquisition programme for this advanced short- and medium-haul twinjet with its lower carbon emission credentials.

“With today’s delivery of our thirtieth Airbus A220, we have marked another milestone in the biggest fleet renewal in the history of our company,” says SWISS CEO Dieter Vranckx. “We are proud to now have 30 of these innovative aircraft in our fleet ranks. The Airbus A220 helps give us one of Europe’s most advanced aircraft fleets,” he continues. “This in turn enables us to live up to our environmental responsibilities. And SWISS will continue to invest in advanced aircraft and technologies. To do so, though, we must be able to operate within parameters that allow us to maintain both a competitive edge and an investment capability.”

The most impressive moments of 5 years A220 fleet renewal

airBaltic gets its 21st Airbus A220-300 and the 100th A220 aircraft ever made

airBaltic in Canada celebrates its 21st Airbus A220-300, the 100th A220n a new livery

Executives of the Latvian government backed airline airBaltic have been in Mirabel, Canada over the last couple of days to celebrate the delivery of the firms 21st Airbus A220-300 jet.

The aircraft registered YL-AAU is the first to feature a new and allegedly 'improved' livery which from now on will be deployed on all the company's new aircraft. Apparently, the greener tails is supposed to emphasise airBaltic's commitment to becoming a more sustainable airline with one of the greenest fleets. 

Martin Gauss, Chief Executive Officer of airBaltic: “We are truly proud to be the launch operator of the Airbus A220-300 aircraft which, being an integral part of airBaltic’s fleet over the last three years has demonstrated an outstanding performance. To introduce this aircraft was a forward-thinking decision that has most certainly paid off as A220 family aircraft are not only considerably more fuel-efficient and environmentally friendly, but also more convenient for both passengers and staff. The vision of an all-Airbus A220 fleet by 2023 is the backbone of airBaltic’s Destination 2025 business plan and the celebration of our 21st A220-300 aircraft from the newest order marks another step towards the set aim.”

Engine troubles cause A220 fleet grounding for SWISS as carrier adds Ljubljana to its route network

From 16 October onwards, SWISS will be offering a new service to the Slovenian capital of Ljubljana, departing from its hub at Zurich Airport. There will be five connections a week initially, with a daily flight from 27 October.

Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) is to extend its route network to include a new destination, Ljubljana, from 16 October onwards. There will be five flights weekly up to and including 26 October, which will initially be operated by Helvetic Airways. With the rollout of the winter schedule on 27 October SWISS will fly to the new destination once a day from Zurich on an alternate basis with its wet lease partner, Helvetic Airways.

Prior to discontinuation of flight operations by Adria Airways, SWISS passengers were able to travel to from Zurich to Ljubljana thanks to a codeshare agreement. The new flights will ensure a continuing connection. As a result, passengers from all over the world will still enjoy smooth travel to the Slovenian capital via the SWISS hub at Zurich Airport. Passengers from Ljubljana will have access to the Swiss flag carrier’s worldwide network.

airBaltic Receives its 20th Airbus A220-300 and wants a US connection.

The Latvian airline airBaltic welcomed its 20th Airbus A220-300 on September 21, 2019, in Riga. The aircraft, with the registration YL-AAT, is the last one from airBaltic's original order. 

By the end of this year, the carrier expects to have 22 Airbus A220-300 aircraft, with those last two coming from a second order it made back in May last year for 30 aircraft and options for 30 more. 

Martin Gauss, Chief Executive Officer of airBaltic: “We are delighted to receive our 20th aircraft and finalize the first order. The decision to order the aircraft in 2012 and then become the launch operator of the most modern jet aircraft the Airbus A220-300, was a successful one and we have benefited from it greatly. airBaltic is now on a stable growth path because we have made many important steps for our further development, and our fleet modernization has been one of them. In the future, our fleet will consist only of Airbus A220-300 aircraft and will be one of our strengths and competitive advantages.”

Summer 2019 is hotting up for airBaltic

The summer is already hotting up for Latvian airline airBaltic, who in cooperation with the international tour operator Tez Tour Latvija has published its enhanced charter programme for the forthcoming summer season.

Staring in late April the firms will offer regular charter flights to a selection of five sunny leisure destinations. Martin Gauss, Chief Executive Officer of airBaltic: “When it comes down to summer holiday destinations, it is essential for airlines to have an offer in place several months before the season starts. We are delighted to continue our successful cooperation with Tez Tour Latvija and increase the number of direct charter flights from Riga to different holiday destinations.”

More expansion at Geneva for SWISS including daily flights to Frankfurt and Munich

More expansion for the Swiss airline of the Lufthansa Group will see the airline SWISS connect Geneva with the German cities of Munich and Frankfurt.

From March 31st the airline will operate the routes on a daily basis for a seven-month period. The airline will operate five flights a day between Geneva and Munich. Whilst there will be a choice of up to eight daily flights between Geneva and Frankfurt, of which four will be operated by SWISS and four by Lufthansa

These new flights will greatly enchance the connectiveity from Geneva and are designed to appeal to both business and leisure passengers. Swiss is also expanding its Geneva based fleet, with the addition of six summer destinations announced for 2019 and the introduction of regular service to the two German cities, Swiss will soon connect Geneva to 45 destinations. To meet this expansion of the route network, three new aircraft will complete Swiss’s short-haul fleet in Geneva, which will consist of seven CS300 and three CS100 by June 2019.

.

(Images Swiss International Airlines)

airBaltic to start charter flights to Corfu

Photo airBaltic

The Government owned and financed Latvian carrier, airBaltic in cooperation with the international tour operator Mouzenidis Travel has announced that it will operate weekly charter flights to the beautiful and sunny Greek island of Corfu. 

Wolfgang Reuss, SVP Network Management of airBaltic: “We are excited to start cooperation with a new professional partner Mouzenidis Travel, further enhancing the variety of direct flights to sunny leisure destinations available to the Latvian passengers.”

CORENA fleet supporting Airbus A220 in production

Photo Flatirons Solutions

Flatirons Solutions is proud to announce that the CORENA Fleet solution is now being used in production for Airbus A220 (Formally known as the Bombardier C Series) aircraft operating in revenue-producing flight operations.

Airline customers use CORENA Fleet for the revision and viewing of maintenance information for diverse aircraft, engines, and components – including the Pratt & Whitney PW1500G engine used for the A220. The solution is used by tens of thousands of aircraft maintenance technicians, work planners, and authors to provide the technical information needed to keep thousands of Boeing, Airbus, Embraer, and Bombardier passenger aircraft flying.

Delta's Airbus A220 takes to the skies

Delta Air Lines is celebrating the launch of commercial flights with the Airbus A220, which has been years in the making.

In the early hours this morning, Delta flight DL744 pushed back from the gate at New York's LaGuardia airport carrying customers for the first time on the newest narrowbody jet addition to the Delta fleet.

Terminal C was bustling with excitement as customers, employees, media and aviation enthusiasts gall came together to celebrate the inaugural operational flight. "We have big plans for this aircraft," said Chuck Imhof, Vice President — New York and Sales, East. "It will be an integral part of our future domestic fleet and will deliver an experience our customers will look forward to every time they fly."

SWISS repaints CS300 aircraft

to mark Fête des Vignerons 2019

The bright new special livery             Photo Swiss

SWISS, the international airline of Switzerland has lifted the covers on a specially painted livery on one of its advanced CS300 aircraft at its home base of Geneva Airport.

The aircraft has been given this bright and colourful special livery to honour and highlight this summer’s Fête des Vignerons festival in Vevey in Western Switzerland, for which SWISS is the principal supporting partner. 

The livery has been designed by Western Swiss artist Mathias Forbach (alias Fichtre) to mark this long living tradition. Festival director Daniele Finzi Pasca paid tribute to Fichtre’s artistic creation by serving as the “godparent” to the aircraft. The unveiling was also attended by Vaud State Councillor Philippe Leuba and Geneva State Councillor Serge Dal Busco. 

Delta carried 14 million people last month

Delta Air Lines, one of the USA's leading mega-carriers has issued its latest facts and figures regarding its performance in January.

The airline carried an amazing 14.1 million customers across its broad global network during the first month of this year, up just over 6% from last year. It was also a month in which the carrier also added to its order book for the Airbus A220 by 15 additional aircraft for a total of 90 aircraft and converting 35 existing A220-100 orders into the larger A220-300.

Delta also helped celebrate the life and legacy of Dr Martin Luther King Jr. in several ways, including as a presenting sponsor of the King Center's Salute To Greatness and The Delta Air Lines Foundation issuing a grant to the National Park Service to re-open the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park in Atlanta during the recent government shutdown.

Ranking as the best U.S. airline by the Wall Street Journal for the second year in a row and as the world's most on-time airline by FlightGlobal.

JetBlue Airways firms up order for 60 Airbus A220-300 aircraft

JetBlue Airways has firmed up an order for 60 A220-300 aircraft, the larger model of the new, industry-leading A220 series.

Another major order for the aircraft that was once known as the Bombardier CSeries CS300 demonstrates the power of the Airbus name now behind the product.

“As we approach our 20th anniversary, the impressive range and economics of the highly efficient A220, combined with the outstanding performance of our existing fleet of Airbus A321 and restyled A320 aircraft, will help ensure we deliver the best on board experience to customers and meet our long-term financial targets as we continue disciplined growth into the future,” said Robin Hayes, Chief Executive Officer, JetBlue.

Airbus is taking the A220-300 (Formally known as the Bombardier CSeries CS300) on tour!

The European planemaker Airbus is taking an airBaltic A220-300 new-generation single-aisle aircraft on a tour of five cities in four countries as part of its world demonstration tour.

First, the sleek looking A220-300 is attending the Zhuhai airshow in China from today, November 5th until Thursday, November 8th before flying to Chengdu on November 9th. The aircraft will continue on its journey with a stopover in Koh Samui on November 10th before flying to Nepal's Kathmandu for November 11th. After that, the airBaltic A220 will go to Istanbul in Turkey on November 12th and then the lovely craft will fly to the home base of airBaltic, Riga, Latvia on November 14th.

Airbus believe this demonstration tour for the A220-300 is a great opportunity to show off the fast, technologically advanced, super efficient and spacious aircraft to the media and potential customers in their own local region.  It will offer the opportunity for airline bosses and journalists to get up close and personal to the aircraft and its outstanding characteristics, comfort, and performance and see the benefit for both operators and passengers alike.

airBaltic’s A220-300 features a comfortable cabin arrangement able to accommodate 145 passengers in true widebody comfort. The Latvian airline already operates 13 A220-300s out of a total of 50 ordered.

The A220 is the only aircraft purpose built for the 100-150 seat market, and it delivers unbeatable fuel efficiency and true widebody comfort in a single-aisle aircraft. The A220 brings together state-of-the-art aerodynamics, advanced materials and Pratt & Whitney’s latest-generation PW1500G geared turbofan engines to offer at least 20 percent lower fuel burn per seat compared to previous generation aircraft. With a range of up to 3,200 nm (5,020 km), the A220 offers the performance of larger single-aisle aircraft. With an order book of over 400 aircraft to date, the A220 has all the credentials to win the lion’s share of the 100- to 150-seat aircraft market.

(Photos Airbus )

Airbus is taking the A220-300 (Formally known as the Bombardier CSeries CS300) on tour!

Delta Air Lines shows off its new A220..................... Inside the new plane

This week Delta Air Lines shared photos of the modern interior of its brand new Airbus A220-100 aircraft.

Proud to show off the most recent addition to the Delta fleet, the airline released photos of the cabin on the 10th anniversary of its merger with Northwest.

“As we look back at our growth over the past 10 years since the Delta-Northwest merger, we reflect on the complementary strengths the two airlines brought to form a combined company that’s well positioned to continue leading the industry in decades to come,” said Gil West, Delta’s Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. “In many ways, the A220 represents our continued work to make flying better for everyone and represents the go-forward objectives of our fleet strategy.”

Designed to be experience-rich for customers, Delta’s A220 will bring elements of the international travel experience that customers have enjoyed on widebody aircraft — like Delta’s flagship A350 — to domestic routes for customers to enjoy at home.

Inaugural A220 flights are set to depart on 31st January, from Delta's hub at New York's LaGuardia airport to its growing operation at Boston Logan International, and from LaGuardia to top business destination Dallas/Ft. Worth.

 

 

 More photos inside the new A220 -

The first Airbus A220 for Delta is handed over...

It's official: Delta Air Lines' fleet now features the state-of-the-art and experience-rich Airbus A220-100, slated to debut on scheduled flights in January.

At a ceremony in Mirabel, Quebec, where the Airbus A220, formally known as Bombardier's CSeries jets are made, Delta became the first North American operator of the A220.

"The innovation, creativity and remarkable engineering skills that went into the design and production of this aircraft is simply breathtaking," said Delta CEO Ed Bastian to an audience of Delta, Airbus and Bombardier employees gathered in Mirabel. "The A220 will serve as the cornerstone of our future domestic growth."

Delta's A220 is the latest investment in a fleet modernization program that aims to replace 20% of older, less-efficient aircraft by 2020. The A220 will bring an elevated customer experience to top business routes with features that customers will look forward to every time they fly.

"We at Airbus are dedicated to providing the right products for a marketplace that needs modern, efficient and customer-friendly aircraft — and the remarkable A220 certainly delivers," said Guillaume Faury, President of Airbus's commercial aircraft business. "When a great airline like Delta puts a new aircraft into service, the entire industry takes note. The A220 team is gratified by the confidence that the Delta family has placed in this aircraft."

Donated C Series aircraft arrives at École nationale d’aérotechnique

C Series Aircraft Lands at École nationale d’aérotechnique to Start New Training Mission

Yesterday, one of the first and indeed, one of the last Bombardier CSeries aircraft landed for the first time at the St-Hubert airport, where it was officially handed over by Bombardier to the École nationale d’aérotechnique (ÉNA). Hundreds of students welcomed the newest addition to the ÉNA’s fleet at an event attended by professors, staff members and representatives from both Bombardier and Airbus. 

The CS100 aircraft donated by Bombardier was welcomed by hundreds of students at the École nationale d’aérotechnique

This aircraft will enhance aerospace technical training by giving Québec students access to the latest technology in commercial aviation

airBaltic welcomes Pope Francis on an Airbus A220

The Latvian airline airBaltic is the official airline for Pope Francis and his official delegation on their trip to Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia this week and welcomed the pontiff on one of its super comfortable Airbus A220s. 

It's the first time in history, that an airBaltic Airbus A220-300 aircraft has carried the papal delegation on any journey and is something the airline is genuinely proud of. Martin Gauss, CEO of airBaltic: “It is a great honour and pride for the Latvian airline airBaltic to become the official carrier of the Papal delegation’s visit to the Baltics. It will be a significant visit, as all three Baltic states are celebrating their centenary this year.”  

The first Airbus A220-100 in Delta colours rolls out of the paint shop.

Another milestone in the development of the Airbus A220, formerly known as the Bombardier CSeries took place this week with the first Airbus A220-100 in Delta Air Lines colours rolling our the paint shop.

Larry Cato, a programme manager on Delta’s Fleet Management team, was onsite for the occasion. “There’s nothing like seeing years of planning come together in the shape of a freshly painted aircraft,” Cato said. “It’s a major milestone for the future of our fleet.” as the aircraft came out of the paint shop at the A220 assembly line in Mirabel, Quebec.

In total, the painting process took nine days to complete and used 200 rolls of masking tape and 165 gallons of paint and can be seen in a delightful time-lapse video. The new regional single-aisle jet that continues to surprise with its performance and comfort looked resplended in the Delta livery. 

Goodbye CSeries CS100 and CS300 and hello Airbus A220's

Airbus has revealed possibly the worst kept secret in the aviation world for the last few weeks, the new name for what was the Bombardier CSeries aircraft CS100 and CS300.  From now on, following the sell-off of the CSeries programme to Airbus, the aircraft will be known as the A220-100 and A220-300.

The European giant manufacturer held a special ceremony at its Henri-Ziegler Delivery Centre, near Toulouse, today, to show off the new paint job on a CS300, opps, I mean A220-300.  The event was witnessed by Airbus employees and some specially invited members of the media. 

The A220 family has now been born and marks the end of the Bombardier's new jet commercial aircraft operations, the Canadian company is now just concentrating updating its CRJ series of aircraft. The strategic limited partnership that handed over control of the CSeries to Airbus is made up of 50,01%  Airbus, approximatively 34% by Bombardier and 16% by Investissement Québec. 

airBaltic Orders up to 60 Bombardier CS300 Aircraft

Great news for Bombardier Commercial Aircraft today as they and Air Baltic announced that the parties have executed a firm purchase agreement for the sale and purchase of 30 CS300 aircraft with options and purchase rights for an additional 30 aircraft of the same type.

Based on the list price of the CS300 aircraft, the firm order is valued at approximately US$ 2.9 billion. This amount would increase to nearly US$5.9 billion should all 15 options and 15 purchase rights be exercised.

“As the C Series aircraft program continues to gain market acceptance, this significant reorder from our CS300 launch operator is a strong testimony to the aircraft’s exceptional in-service performance,”said Fred Cromer, President, Bombardier Commercial Aircraft. “Furthermore, we are proud that the CS300 has helped airBaltic maintain its position as one of the world’s most punctual airlines. The C Series aircraft is at the forefront of the small single-aisle market, and airBaltic played a key role in demonstrating its value. In the last 18 months, we have witnessed airBaltic’s growing leadership in the market, and we wish the airline further success with its expanded CS300 fleet.”

The C Series firm order book to over 400 aircraft

With this order, airBaltic becomes the largest European C Series customer and the second largest customer worldwide with 50 aircraft on firm order. The airline’s new business plan relies on significant expansion of routes from all three Baltic countries – Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania.