On Friday, Airbus announced the milestone delivery of their 100th Airbus A220 produced to Latvian carrier airBaltic. The aircraft was unveiled at the company’s Mirabel, Canada production facility.
Today, Airbus and airBaltic celebrated the delivery of the 100th A220 (formerly Bombardier C-Series) at the company’s Mirabel, Canada facility. According to the announcement, the aircraft features a new comfortable cabin layout with a capacity of 149 seats. Airbus A220 Family aircraft are assembled either at the company’s main Final Assembly Line in Mirabel, Canada or their recently opened Mobile, Alabama facility. The launch customer for the A220-100 was SWISS, who received their first aircraft in June 2016. AirBaltic was the launch customer for the A220-300, having received their first aircraft on November 28, 2019. The Latvian carrier has since placed two more A220 orders, bringing its total to 50 firm orders. Currently airBaltic operates 20 A220s and when the remaining aircraft are delivered, they will be that largest European operator of the type.
As part of airBaltic’s business plan to succeed in a very competitive market, they have chosen to build an all A220 fleet which offers unequalled fuel efficiency and performance. The airline serves European, Russian and Middle Eastern destinations including their longest route, a 6.5 hour Riga-Abu Dhabi flight.
The Airbus A220 was originally developed by the Canadian firm Bombardier as the ‘C-Series’ before the program was acquired by Airbus. The A220 is the only all-new purpose built clean sheet aircraft designed for the 100-150 seat market, promising best-in-class fuel efficiency, while delivering "widebody passenger comfort.” Powered by Pratt & Whitney PW1500G geared turbofan engines, the aircraft delivers a twenty percent lower fuel burn per seat along with a reduced noise and emissions footprint versus previous generation aircraft. Nearly 100 A220s are in operation worldwide and at the end of October, Airbus had secured 530 firm orders from more than 20 global customers.
Source: Airbus