Aviation360 MEA

The Airbus A220 was introduced for the first time by the Canadian manufacturer in 2008 under the name Bombardier CSeries. Before the aircraft’s designation was formally changed in 2018 when Airbus announced the acquisition of a 50.01% stake in the program, the plane operated on a commercial basis for two years under the Bombardier moniker.

Today, the Airbus A220 flies on over 1,100 routes worldwide and visits over 375 destinations regularly. With a range of up to 3,600 nautical miles, the aircraft can truly fly a mind-boggling array of routes, ranging from 30-minute regional hops to long-haul 8-hour treks.

In total, the aircraft family has flown over 1 billion km, connecting an incredible 90 million people to family members and destinations across the globe.

Unlike the rest of Airbus‘s commercial lineup, the story of the A220 does not begin in a design room in Toulouse, but instead across the Atlantic in Quebec, where Bombardier engineers sought to expand beyond the company’s traditional lineup of just regional jets.

Soon, production delays, budget overruns, and an anti-competition petition filed by American jet manufacturer Boeing led a cash-strapped Bombardier to partner with Airbus.

Not only was the European corporation able to help market the jet and support the aircraft’s manufacturing costs, Airbus’s final assembly line in Mobile, Alabama, nullified Boeing’s dumping petition, as the aircraft would now be legally made in the United States.

Eventually, in 2020, Bombardier would sell its remaining stake in the program for $591 million, and Airbus now maintains a 75% interest in the program, with investment firm Investissement Quebec maintaining a 25% stake. Airbus could acquire this remaining share as early as 2030.

Now, the jet stands as a highly modern airliner, reducing fuel burn and carbon emissions by 25% in comparison to the previous generation of aircraft. Furthermore, the A220 brings a 50% smaller noise footprint than former aircraft of the jet’s size.

The Airbus A220 has performed exceptionally well, with the family maintaining a healthy backlog and consistent deliveries. Overall, the A220 has sold over 806 units so far, with 271 of those delivered to airlines by June 2023.

Most A220 orders have come for the larger Airbus A220-300 variant, with 713 orders and 215 deliveries. The manufacturer has delivered 56 units of the smaller A220-100 variant, with a backlog of 37 units remaining for the type.