Delta Takes Delivery of First Airbus A321neo

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It’s an exciting week for Delta, as the airline has taken delivery of its first Airbus A321neo. This has some interesting implications for the passenger experience.

Delta gets first of 155 Airbus A321neos

Delta has marked an exciting milestone for its narrow body fleet renewal, as the airline has taken delivery of its very first Airbus A321neo:

For context, the A321neo is exactly the same size as the previous version of the A321. What’s different is that the jet is about 20% more fuel efficient, which also means that the plane has more range. It’s incredible to see the progress that aircraft manufacturers have made with fuel efficiency, which is great for airlines, passengers, and the environment.

This added efficiency is largely thanks to new engines, with the “neo” standing for “new engine option” (while “ceo” stands for “current engine option”).

I also find it noteworthy how small the gap is between Delta’s A321ceo deliveries and A321neo deliveries. Delta has been taking delivery of A321ceos all the way through December 2021, which are at this point outdated aircraft (since the A321neo is the same aircraft, just more efficient, and has been in production for several years). Now, a few months later, the airline is taking delivery of the more efficient version of the jet. Delta’s current A321 fleet is an average of just over three years old, so it’s still quite young.

The Delta Airbus A321neo passenger experience

What should passengers expect onboard Delta’s Airbus A321neos? The planes will feature 194 seats, which is three more seats than you’ll find on current A321s. Specifically, you can expect:

The planes will have high-speed Viasat Wi-Fi, seatback entertainment, and power at every seat. On top of that, Delta is debuting its new domestic first class seat on the A321neo, This is the first real innovation we’ve seen to domestic first class seats within the United States in a while, and I’m excited to experience this. This looks somewhat similar to Turkish Airlines’ A321neo business class, but not nearly as spacious.

Delta is historically known for having nicer cabins on narrow body aircraft than American and United. Delta’s trick is that it puts TVs at every seat and makes the cabins look cool, but from an efficiency standpoint, Delta crams in seats, much like American.

For example, American’s A321neos have 196 seats, so that’s only two more seats than Delta has on these planes. So while Delta has slightly fewer seats than American, the A321neo has more seats than the previous version of the A321.

Bottom line

Delta has taken delivery of its first of 155 Airbus A321neo aircraft. The A321neo is a fuel efficient plane, and will allow Delta to operate many routes with lower costs. In this case there’s also a new passenger experience to look forward to, as Delta will be introducing new first class seats on the A321neos. I’m excited for these jets to enter service in May.

What do you make of Delta’s new A321neos?