Delta Air Lines has just increased its Airbus A321neo aircraft order even further, with a firm order for an additional 30 planes.
Delta now has 155 A321neos on order
Delta has just firmed up an order for an additional 30 Airbus A321neos, bringing the Atlanta-based carrier’s total A321neo order to 155 aircraft. This follows the airline increasing its A321neo order from 120 to 155 aircraft back in April 2021.
The Atlanta-based carrier previously had purchase options for all of these planes, but has only now finalized the order. Delta still has purchase options for an additional 70 A321neos, meaning the airline could eventually order 225 of these planes.
Delta will take delivery of its first A321neo in the first half of 2022, and those deliveries will continue through 2027. What’s interesting is that while other airlines are already taking delivery of the A321neo (and A321LR, for that matter), Delta is currently still taking delivery of “last generation” A321s.
On the surface it seems like an odd strategy, since the plane is outdated in terms of fuel efficiency and range the second the airline takes delivery of it. Presumably the contract for those was signed before A321neo production started, though often these deals can be negotiated. At a minimum, I suspect Delta got a great deal on these planes.
What to expect from Delta’s A321neos
The biggest benefit of the A321neo over the previous generation A321 is that it’s more fuel efficient and longer range. For example, the A321neo is 12% more fuel efficient than the previous version of the A321, so that’s fantastic.
Delta’s A321neos will feature a total of 194 seats, including 20 first class seats, 42 Comfort+ seats, and 132 economy seats. As a point of comparison, American’s A321neos feature a total of 196 seats, including 20 first class seats, 47 Main Cabin Extra seats, and 129 economy seats. So the capacity isn’t significantly different there.
The A321neo will also be the aircraft on which Delta’s new domestic first class seat debuts, which will feature a bit more privacy, for better or worse.
As you’d expect, the A321neo will feature personal televisions and power ports at every seat, plus high speed Wi-Fi. Personally I prefer Airbus narrow body aircraft to Boeing competitors, given that the seats are slightly wider.
The A321neo will be used primarily on domestic flights, and will largely replace Delta’s huge fleet of Boeing 757-200s and 757-300s, which are used for similar flights (though Delta also has some premium configured 757-200s, used for premium transcon and transatlantic flights).
Bottom line
Delta has increased its firm Airbus A321neo order by 30 aircraft, bringing the total to 155 aircraft. Delta will start taking delivery of the A321neo as of the first half of 2022, which is when the airline should stop taking delivery of previous generation A321s. Delta’s new domestic first class seat will also debut on the A321neo.
What do you make of Delta increasing its A321neo order?
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