American carrier Delta Airlines is set to receive its first Airbus A330neo within the next couple of months. The aircraft has been spotted in Toulouse receiving the finishing touches before delivery. Delta has ordered 35 A330neo aircraft. The delivery was broken by FlightGlobal.

The A330neo is the latest aircraft from the Airbus A330 family. While it retains the original overall design of the A330, new features make it far more environmentally friendly. However, while there are two models of the A330neo, one has sold rather poorly compared to the other. So far just three of the aircraft have been delivered.

35 orders

According to Airbus' official order statistics, 230 A330-900 aircraft have been ordered. Of this, 35 aircraft have been ordered by Delta Airlines. The smaller A330-800 has sold less well with only eight total orders, all from Kuwait Airways. The main difference with both new aircraft are their more efficient engines.

So far three of the aircraft have been delivered, two to TAP Air Portugal and one to aviation leasing company ALC. Delta will be the A330neo's launch customer for North America. However, Delta is currently the only North American operator to order the A330neo.

Seattle routes

Currently, the A330 is set to operate three routes for Delta. Initially, the aircraft will be based in Seattle, with the first three routes departing from this origin. These routes will launch throughout July and August as follows:

  • Shanghai Pudong International Airport (PVG) starting July 1st
  • Seoul Incheon International Airport (ICN) starting August 1st
  • Tokyo Narita International Airport (NRT) starting August 31st
Delta A330 neo
The launch route map for Delta's A330neos. Image: GCMaps

Delta will, of course, add more routes to this, but the rollout will be gradual as the aircraft are delivered. The first flight of the A330neo will be from Seattle to Shanghai on July 1st. The flight is scheduled to depart from Seattle at 15:25, arriving in Shanghai at 19:15 the next day.

Delta A330neo
Tickets for the first A330neo service are on sale now. Source: Delta.com

Onboard seating

According to Delta's seat plan, there will be four separate cabins on board. This will consist of Main, Comfort+, Premium Select, and 29 Delta One Suites. While there are only 28 premium select seats onboard, the aircraft will also contain 56 Comfort+ seats. Finally, 168 seats will be Main Cabin seats.

The Delta One Suite will be laid out in a 1-2-1 configuration, while the Premium Select Cabin will receive a 2-3-2 layout. Both the Comfort+ and Main cabins will have a 2-4-2 configuration, however, as the aircraft tapers at the rear this becomes 2-3-2 for the final four rows.

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