QantasLink’s First A220 To Arrive In Australia This Week

Qantas has received the keys to it’s brand-new Airbus A220-300, with the jet expected to arrive in Sydney this Wednesday. The aircraft in question rolled out of Airbus’ paintshop last month, featuring a striking Aboriginal-inspired livery that took two weeks to paint.

The A220 is the sixth livery and seventh aircraft to join the national carrier’s Flying Art Series. Leading design agency, Balarinji, has worked with Qantas to create fuselage designs for each Indigenous livery, in collaboration with First Nations artists.

The latest Flying Art Series livery features the artwork of Maringka Baker and tells the Dreaming story of two sisters who traverse remote Australia together, covering vast distances to find their way home. Following the tradition of Qantas’ Flying Art series, the aircraft is named “Minyma Kutjara Tjukurpa” after the artwork, which means “the two sisters creation story”.

It’s the first of 29 Airbus A220s that will be delivered to Qantas as part of a domestic fleet renewal program. The type will replace ageing Boeing 717s, which continue to break down across the country. This will be the fourth new aircraft delivered to Qantas in the past 12 months, in addition to the eight Airbus A321neoLR jets received by Jetstar within that same time. Further deliveries of multiple next-generation aircraft are expected in the next year, including the first Airbus A321XLR which will slowly replace Qantas 737-800s.

The first-of-its-kind aircraft for QantasLink wears the registration VH-X4A, making it the first Qantas Group aircraft to bear a combination of letters and numbers in its registration. For the AvGeeks reading, registrations of the first twenty A220s will run in sequence from VH-X4A to VH-X4T, followed by VH-X5A to VH-X5I for the further nine jets.

Having already departed Airbus’ Canadian factory, X4A is operating as QF6075 with stops in Vancouver, Honolulu and Fiji. At noon on Wednesday, 20th December, Qantas’ first Airbus A220 is expected to arrive in Sydney as QF6076.

Below is QantasLink’s A220 delivery schedule, in local timezones;

• 16th December: Montreal to Vancouver, STD 10:00am – STA 12:10am
• 17th December: Vancouver to Honolulu, STD 10:00am – STA 2:05pm
• 18th December: Honolulu to Nadi, STD 10:00am – STA 14:25pm
• 20th December: Nadi to Sydney, STD 8:30am – STA 12:00pm

QantasLink’s A220 Seating

The QantasLink A220 will accommodate 137 passengers, 25% more than the Boeing 717 it will replace. Business class welcomes ten passengers in a 2-2 configuration, staggered with two rows on the left (lettered A/C) and three rows on the right (lettered D/F).

Because the Red Roo has squeezed in an extra row of business, the 127-seat economy cabin is also staggered. The good news is, just like the 717, the A220 boasts a 2-3 configuration in economy, meaning there are only twenty-five middle seats onboard. On the left, A/C seats have twenty-six rows, while D/E/F seats on the right have twenty-five rows.

As far as the seats themselves, Qantas is keeping their cards close to the chest. However, we expect to see a very similar seat to the Recaro CL3810 that is to be fitted to Qantas’ Airbus A350 jets. While there won’t be any seatback screens, it is easy to assume Qantas will deploy a device holder alongside USB-A and USB-C charging ports.

At the pointy end, Flight Hacks expects Qantas to opt for the Recaro CL4710. Again, no seatback screens are expected, but device holders, improved storage, calfrests and footrests are welcome enhancements. The latest-generation USB-A and USB-C charging ports, plus a wireless charging pad, wouldn’t be a surprise.

Where Will The A220 Fly?

While QantasLink’s A220 fleet grows, the jet will mostly connect smaller capital cities including Canberra and Hobart, with the three major hubs of Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney.
The first passenger route will operate between Canberra and Melbourne, followed by Canberra and Brisbane shortly thereafter. But before welcoming passengers, Qantas’ new small jet must complete a number of activities. As this is the first Australian A220, Qantas will spend several weeks flying around to build experience for its ground, cabin and flight crews. In addition, Australia’s very fun Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) must observe flights and evacuation drills for regulatory approval.

Once the fleet is up and running, Qantas can take full advantage of the 6,300km range of the A220-300. As CEO Venessa Hudson mentioned, the jet has double the endurance of the Boeing 717.

“you could see us being able to operate a 220 between Brisbane and Broome, Perth-Brisbane [and] Adelaide up into north Queensland,” says Hudson.

That range even brings New Zealand and a large portion of South-East Asia into the equation, where the new A220 could launch several international routes that lack the demand for a large jet.