Airbus has delivered its first US-assembled A220 aircraft from Mobile, Alabama, to Delta Air Lines.
“The delivery of the first US-built A220-300 is a historic moment that highlights Airbus’ growing industrial footprint in North America and makes us all extremely proud,” said C. Jeffrey Knittel, Chairman & CEO Airbus Americas. “We look forward to seeing passengers delighted by the experience of travelling on board this brand new A220-300 proudly built in Mobile, Alabama.”
Several milestones led up to this historic moment. From the groundbreaking of the Mobile A220 Final Assembly Line in January 2019, through the official start of A220 production in August 2019 to the inaugural flight of the aircraft in June.
“Handing over the first U.S-assembled aircraft to a US-based customer is a real point of pride for the A220 programme,” said Philippe Balducchi, leading the A220 programme. “This delivery is the first of many to come and shows the strong collaborative spirit between the A220 Programme teams globally.”
To date, approximately 400 US employees have been trained on A220 production - some in Mirabel, Quebec, Canada, where the A220 program and primary final assembly line are located.
Delta Air Lines is currently the largest A220 customer, with a total of 95 A220 aircraft on order, and will be the first A220 operator in the Americas to be operating both A220-100 and A220-300 aircraft types.