Delta Air Lines’ first Airbus A220 has been painted in Delta colors at a paint shop in Mirabel, Quebec.
Atlanta-based Delta will be the first U.S. airline to take delivery of the A220.
The plane now moves into final assembly in Mirabel, and will take its first test flight this fall before beginning service in early 2019.
Delta has ordered 75 of the jets, which were originally known as the Bombardier C Series CS100 before Airbus bought a majority stake in the C Series business.
Painting the A220-100 took nine days, 165 gallons of paint and 200 rolls of masking tape, according to Delta.
PATRICK DESROCHERS
PATRICK DESROCHERS
When the C Series order was announced in 2016, Delta expected to start flying the planes in spring 2018, configured with roughly 110 seats and used to fly short to medium-length routes. Delta has been buying new plans to replace older regional jets and other narrow-body planes.
The C Series was at the center of a heated trade dispute last year when the Trump administration proposed tariffs of more than 200 percent on the Bombardier jets.
When Airbus bought a majority stake in the Bombardier C Series business, it said it planned to eventually begin final assembly of the planes at the Airbus plant in Mobile, Ala.
The U.S. International Trade Commission later overturned the tariffs on Montreal-based Bombardier.
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