New roomier, brighter Qantas A220 planes take to the skies

Friday, 1 March 2024

The new A220 features an artwork by a First Nations artist composed of more than 20,000 dots.

Flights within Australia just got a little more modern as QantasLink’s two new Airbus A220 aircraft take off for their first commercial flights.

The airline has taken delivery of the first two of 29 A220 jet aircraft, which will steadily replace its long-serving fleet of Boeing 717s as part of the Qantas Group’s domestic fleet renewal program.

The inaugural Melbourne to Canberra service on QF1266 departed Friday morning.

The A220 will also start operating selected flights on the Melbourne-Brisbane route.

In November, Qantas unveiled the new paint job of the A220 aircraft with not a spot of the famous Qantas red.

The new A220 features artwork by Pitjantjatjara woman Maringka Baker, one of Australia’s most accomplished artists, and is composed of more than 20,000 dots.

The new aircraft will be used across Australian domestic and short-haul international routes.

Around 100 painters worked with 130 stencils over two weeks to complete the livery in Airbus’ facility in Canada’s Mirabel, making it the most complex to ever feature on an aircraft of this type.

With almost double the range of the Boeing 717s, the A220s are expected to open up new domestic and short-haul international routes. They will mostly connect smaller state capitals such as Canberra and Hobart with the major hubs of Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

Around 100 painters worked with 130 stencils over two weeks to complete the livery o the A220.

QantasLink CEO Rachel Yangoyan said the A220 would change the way people travelled around Australia.

“These next-generation aircraft are going to make a real difference for customers travelling across our network so it’s great to see it launch commercial flights from today,” she said.

“The A220 is more comfortable, offering a greater sense of space and fast and free Wi-Fi for every customer.

“The aircraft are also quieter and generate up to 25% fewer carbon emissions, which is critical as we work towards our net zero target.”

The A220 has space for 137 passengers across economy and business classes

The A220 has space for 137 passengers across two cabins, with 10 business seats in a two-two configuration and 127 seats in economy in a two-three configuration.

The seats also have more padding than those in the Boeing 717.

It has the largest windows of any single-aisle aircraft and around 20% more overhead locker space for all customers.

It features an integrated personal device holder and USB A and C charging in both economy and business with an additional wireless charging pad in business.

Yangoyan said many of its customers have been waiting for the opportunity to travel on the new aircraft.

“We saw a spike in bookings on these routes when we identified them as the first A220 flights last week. It was a great response from many customers who clearly wanted to be among the first to experience our new A220.”

The third A220 is in production at Airbus’ facility in Mirabel, Canada, and is due to be delivered in June. Another four A220s are scheduled to be delivered by mid-2025.

As more aircraft are delivered, the A220 will be deployed across other existing routes including Melbourne-Hobart from July, Melbourne-Coffs Harbour from October and Melbourne-Launceston from November.