Since Southwest Airlines and AirTran announced their merger, there’s been one question on many peoples’ lips – what will happen to the sizeable fleet of Boeing 717’s that AirTran operates, since they blatantly don’t fit in with the single fleet (Boeing 737) mantra which Southwest has pioneered since the 1970s.
This was potentially a further problem since the 717 isn’t as fuel efficient as a 737, and thus any low cost airline would naturally be looking at the figures and looking for a different solution.
Well, after much speculation, we finally have an answer. Delta Air Lines are to lease all 88 of AirTran’s Boeing 717’s, with the transition taking three years and starting in Q3 2013.
This makes sense for Delta, who have a large fleet of DC-9/MD-80 aircraft (of which family the 717 is also a member), and is retiring its remaining ageing  DC-9s, so will need replacements.
So expect to see the 717s at Atlanta live on, and in a new colour scheme.
