Oh, happy day!(?)
In paperwork filed last week with the SEC (the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, not the sports conference), Delta said it’s getting rid of their CRJ-200 aircraft.
I find a couple of things interesting here.
1. Delta’s said for years it’s phasing out the CRJ-200s. We’re nearing the tenth anniversary of that news. So I’ll believe this when I see it. (Will you intentionally ride the last CRJ-200 flight?)
2. To the best of my knowledge, the CRJ-200s operating in the Delta system aren’t owned by Delta itself. Rather, the airline contracts out to regional carriers such as SkyWest. (Perhaps I’m being nitpicky here.)
I applaud this move, just as any reasonable person would.
In the filing, Delta said its system’s CRJ-200s will be retired by December 2023. So we have a while to go.
Keep in mind that at this time last year, “coronavirus” was a term foreign to many people. “COVID” sounded like a store that still rents VHS tapes.
Heck, 2024 Presidential election debates will be in full swing in December 2023.
So a lot can happen between now and then.
Other Aircraft Retirements
Delta said the 717 and 767-300s will also be earning their gold watches. Those planes will be retired by December 2025.
As someone who’s flown the LAX-JFK route several times — which is serviced exclusively by 767-300s — I’m curious what Delta will put in its place.
Final Approach
Is it time to break out the bubbly and shake a final fist at Satan’s Chariot?
Nope.
We still have at least three years of the CRJ-200 left (at least, in Delta’s system). But here’s hoping Delta makes it happen — and hopefully sooner.
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A330-200 feels like the optimal replacement for the JFK-LAX route. The seat capacity is relatively close. Plus, at that time they’ll have a more competitive Delta One product across the A330neos, 764s and A350s for longer routes.
Delta’s owned CRJ200s are at Endeavor Air (their wholly own subsidiary) and not SkyWest.
So in reality they mean Endeavor Air’s CRJ200s are going away.
Great to hear. Avoided those unless given no option.
They also use A330-300 on JFK-LAX, and the 757-200.
They did. But with the exception of majorly reduced capacity and flights between the two airports a few months ago (DL used 757 on the route for a bit) Delta has exclusively operated 767-300s between JFK and LAX.