We flew on the new Delta Airbus jet that Boeing tried to keep out of the US to see if it lives up to the hype. Here's the verdict.
After three years of waiting, it was finally time for the first commercial flight of Delta's new Airbus A220. Delta's first A220 service, Flight 744, from New York LaGuardia to Boston Logan was set to take off at 6 am. To be safe, we arrived at the airport shortly after 4 am. So early that neither the Delta counter...
... Nor the Transportation Security Administration checkpoint were open for business.
After 20 minutes of waiting, we quickly made it through the security checkpoint and to the gate.
Waiting for us at the gate was the plane we've all been waiting for. The A220.
The particular plane chosen to operate the inaugural flight was N102DU. It was the second A220 delivered to the Delta Air Lines.
But first, some inaugural flight festivities. This included speeches from Delta executives, a ribbon cutting, and...
... And photo ops with the crew.
Time to board!
Ginny Elliott, Delta's managing director for airport operations at LaGuardia greeted us at the boarding door.
Once on board, we made our way past the 12 first class seats and...
... The 15 Delta Confort Plus seats.
Now, we've arrived in economy.
The A220 economy and comfort plus cabins feature a 3-2 layout with five seats per row.
I was seated 15D. Row 15 is a bit of an odd duck in that it's an emergency exit row that only has four seats. Seat 15A and 15B have the benefit of additional legroom. However, Seats 15C and 15D do not. But they do get the benefit of some extra elbow thanks to a missing seat.
Missing seat.
The A220 economy cabin features 30 to 32 inches of seat pitch, the distance between two rows.
Delta Comfort Plus get 34 inches of pitches.
First class boasts 36 inches of pitch and a wider 21-inch seat.
Economy and Comfort Plus seats are an impressive 18.6 inches wide. In fact, they are some of the roomiest economy seats in the business.
Soon it was time for takeoff. The cabin crew switch on the blue mood lighting and we were on our way.
The A220's Pratt & Whitney geared turbofan engines spooled up quickly and launched down the runway at LaGuardia. Soon, we were off to Boston. Even next to the wing, the engines were remarkably quiet.
I settled into for the hour-long flight. Legroom proved to adequate, but far from roomy.
Here's a look at the fresh tray table.
Passenger on the flight also received an inaugural flight post card and pin.
The A220 is known for its large windows.
But since this is an emergency exit, my window was less impressive in size.
With that said, the sunrise over New England proved to be rather majestic.
Each passenger has access to a personal entertainment screen.
Each screen is equipped with Delta's new wireless inflight entertainment system.
The system offers a variety of movies,..
... TV shows,...
... Live satellite TV, ...
... Music,...
... Games,...
... A menu of available beverages, and
... A flight map. The user interface was easy to use and the screen quality was good.
There is a US plug in front of each seat along with...
... Available power sockets at each row.
At the back of the plane, just in front of the galley...
... Are the economy cabin lavatories. The one on the right side of the plane is pretty standard fare.
But the one on the left side or the Captain's side of the aircraft boasts a rarely seen feature — a window. The presence of the window created a long line down the aisle. Most people didn't actually need to use the restroom. They simply wanted a photo.
Pretty soon, it was time for the flight to come to an end. The Captain actually announced the plane's descent into Boston before the flight attendants could serve drinks. I skipped drink service in favor of taking pictures of the bathroom window.
Before stepping off the plane, I chatted briefly with one of the pilot who praised the airline's new high tech jet and...
... Its state-of-the-art digital cockpit.
Here's one final look at the new A220. The Delta Airbus A220 inaugural flight was short but on so very sweet. The plane was remarkably quiet while the cabin and its economy seats felt spacious. So, did the A220 live up to the hype? Absolutely.
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