Back when the A220 was the Bombardier CSeries, designers had worked to bring airline customers
a plane they would love. Feedback from potential customers was that they wanted a bigger cabin,
larger windows, more space for baggage, and connectivity (such as inflight WiFi) designed in.
Bombardier delivered all that and more,
in an airplane that was long-range, comfortable, capable, and efficient.
Rob Dewar, a current VP at Airbus Canada, was one of the first three employees to be charged with
designing the CSeries, under Bombardier’s New Commercial Aircraft Program (NCAP).
Since day one, his influence has shaped the CSeries, and now the A220,
from its initial design to the incremental improvements it is getting along the way.
We asked Rob about the success of the A220;
he told us he wasn’t surprised at all. From the outset, Bombardier and, later on,
Airbus, have worked closely with airlines to make the aircraft exactly what they want.
There have been some questions raised regarding the A220’s range in the past,
with some operators wondering if Airbus made it too long-legged to be as efficient as it could.
European operators, in particular, weren’t in need of an aircraft that
was that small but could fly that far, given their focus on shorter missions.
Nevertheless, American operators wanted something that could fly transcontinental,
and so the aircraft was born with a sizeable range. But then, in 2019,
Airbus announced an increased maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) for both variants of the A220,
which would be launched by the middle of 2020. In March 2021, Airbus added another 2.3 tonnes to
the MTOW for the A220-300. The driver for this was one particular airline, as Rob explained,
“It was the Aussies, and Qantas in particular, who said we want even more range. I supported what the
Aussies wanted to make a longer-range aircraft. We had enough fuel volume, but we limited the max
takeoff weight. I was really waiting for Qantas to make the move to really validate the increase,
and thank God they did, because I was starting to think maybe we did a bit too much.”
Qantas did indeed respond to the A220’s increased MTOW,
confirming an order in May 2022 for 20 of the narrowbody jets.
The increased MTOW of the A220 was a gamble, but it has certainly paid off for Airbus. Rob noted
that it has been a popular modification that really came into its own during the pandemic,
“Everyone loves the range, and the pandemic really saw the power of that. The 220 fared
extremely well in the pandemic, because it could fly the longer-range
routes of the bigger single aisles, and basically do it at a much lower cost.”
“What airlines want is flexibility. Can I take off on a short runway? Can I run the short routes,
but can I also run those long routes or any combination thereof? So it is reducing the
risk from a network point of view and gives them full options on what they need to do.”
CEO Alan Joyce described the A220 as the quote “ backbone of our domestic
fleet for the next 20 years” in tandem with the A321XLRs ordered at the same
time. In February this year, the airline added nine more A220s to the order book,
solidifying its commitment and confidence in the jet.
What do you think of the A220 having
its range extended? Share your thoughts by leaving a comment!