Summary
Introduced back in 2008 as the Bombardier CSeries, the Airbus A220 is arguably now one of the most popular airliners in our skies, with customers all around the world.
In Europe, seven different airlines are flying the aircraft, and another is soon to join. Plus, one example is the largest operator of the type in the world.
Find out more about Europe’s A220 operators:
airBaltic
Having transitioned from a mixed fleet of Boeing 737 and de Havilland Canada Q400 aircraft types in the past few years, airBaltic is now solely an Airbus A220 operator.
In fact, it is the world’s largest A220 operator, with some 49 examples in service, and 41 more on order!
The airline uses the type successfully on all sorts of routes, from sub-1 hour regional services to long-haul links to destinations like Dubai and the Canary Islands from its Riga base.
airBaltic flies only the A220-300, and a number of examples are in special liveries depicting Baltic-region flags.
Air France
The French flag carrier has introduced a fleet of 40 Airbus A220-300s so far, and has 20 more on order.
Showing loyalty to the European manufacturer (even if the A220 has a Canadian heritage), Air France has chosen the type to replace its ageing fleets of Airbus A318 and A319 models.
Its A220s are used mostly on domestic and European services out of Paris Charles de Gaulle.
Bulgaria Air
Bulgaria Air took delivery of its first Airbus A220-300 in June 2023.
The airline has ordered both the A220-100 and -300 models and is using them to upgrade its fleet with better efficiency and economy, as well as improving passenger comfort.
Its order was for eight aircraft, with five delivered so far.
Croatia Airlines
The national carrier of Croatia has used the introduction of the A220 as a milestone in its history and a chance to reinvent itself.
When the first A220-300 arrived earlier this year, Croatia Airlines introduced a modified livery and onboard product, and hopes the type will become the backbone of its fleet as it replaces older A319 and A320 aircraft.
Croatia Airlines has 12 more A220-300s on order, plus two -100s.
Cyprus Airways
Cyprus Airways is a long-standing name in aviation. However, the original airline dating back to 1947 ceased trading in 2015 and a new startup emerged in 2016 hoping to take the name forward.
Linking hubs in Larnaca and Paphos with destinations across Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, the new Cyprus Airways has so far taken delivery of two 138-seat Airbus A220-300s, with eight more on order.
These fly alongside larger A320-200s.
Czech Airlines
🇨🇿 Welcome home OK-EYA. The first A220 in the Smartwings fleet (Czech Airlines livery) pic.twitter.com/UT4nwX9SDw
— prgairside (@prgairside) November 21, 2024
CSA Czech Airline has a long history which sadly came to an end on 26 October 2024. Yet you may be confused to note that a brand new Airbus A220 bearing the airline’s livery has recently been delivered to Prague.
Owned by Smartwings, another Czech airline, the Czech Airlines brand is being retained and reinvented albeit now operated under Smartwings crews and flight numbers.
Nevertheless, this makes an interesting new chapter for Czech aviation and the A220, with four aircraft in total scheduled to join the airline.
ITA Airways
Anna Zvereva, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Italian national carrier ITA Airways has a wide-ranging fleet of aircraft wearing its bright blue livery.
These range from widebody Airbus A330neo and A350 aircraft, down to the smallest member of the fleet which is the A220-100.
The airline uses these 125-seat aircraft on routes into airports like London City.
ITA Airways also has ten A220-300s (with nine more on order) on its European and domestic services. They will eventually replace its older A319s.
Swiss International Air Lines
Swiss was the first airline in the world to fly the Airbus A220, when its first -100 model entered service on 1 June 2017 (still known as the CSeries).
Since then it has acquired nine of the type, plus 21 of the larger A220-300s which it uses on services across Europe.
Swiss used the A220 as a natural replacement for its older Avro RJ85 and RJ100 regional jets.
Like ITA Airways, Swiss uses its A220-100s heavily on services into London City Airport.
Have you flown on an Airbus A220 with one of these European airlines? What do you think of the aircraft? Leave a comment below.
