A mix of shock and relief grips Clark W. Griswold, Jr., at the end of National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation when he says, “They’re gone.”
That’s about how I feel.
So, let’s cue up Kool & The Gang, Lionel Richie, and maybe something from those little Boy Scouts named Mötley Crüe.
It’s time to celebrate.
Why?
Delta Stopped Flying CRJ-200s
Delta Connection officially no longer operates CRJ-200s. Please don’t hold your applause.
CRJ-700s, -900s, and Embraer 175s now handle the regional flights.
We heard for years that Delta and its regional partners would phase out Satan’s Chariot. But the finish lines were pushed back — until now.
A source told me the final flight was on Friday, December 1. Delta Connection Flight 4320 (operated by SkyWest) flew from Elko Regional Airport (EKO) to Salt Lake City (SLC).
No word if the plane (tail number N469CA) received a water cannon salute, people threw rocks at it, beat it with baseball bats, or any other appropriate celebration was had.
According to FlightRadar24, the aircraft is still in SLC. (Maybe it’ll be called into action during the holidays if something goes really sideways.)
Why the Hate for the CRJ-200?
There will be some folks who question my apathy toward the CRJ-200.
Yes, the plane got you to your destination — and in a decent amount of time.
But that’s when it worked. Or when the weather didn’t prohibit it from flying when larger aircraft with their crews could. Maintenance and weather issues when I was scheduled to fly CRJ-200s (while other airlines’ mainline planes took off and landed) earned me days of delays.
And the cabin was so cramped and uncomfortable.
Honestly, this is yet another First World gripe. (Something we’re very good about on this blog. 🙂 ) Given the choice of driving (ew) or flying on a CRJ-200, I’d take the CRJ-200 every time.
Assuming it worked and the weather permitted.
Bye, CRJ-200
Delta Connection no longer operates CRJ-200s. (Maybe Delta will turn their skins into some credit card promotion or something.)
And to those planes, I dedicate this song:
Please feel free to share your memories — favorite but probably otherwise — of traveling on Delta’s CRJ-200s. The Comments section is yours.
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I’m a tall guy, 6’6”, I literally could not stand up straight in the cabin. One flight from Wichita, KS to MSP was 100% full, I can still feel it in my knees folding myself into that seat, the relief when that hour and 15 minutes torture flight was over. That was 2019, I never flew one again, I just could not bring myself to subject myself to that Torture again. I bought a plane tag of the CRJ-200 because it will always live in infamy in my mind.
I bought one of those plane tags too! Same reason… Although I am not nearly as tall as you are, I am broad-shouldered, and I made the mistake of picking a window seat where I could not sit straight due to the fuselage. Combined with my chronic back issues (two spinal discs bulging out and pinching the spinal cord), I was just in agony the whole flight.
They had their place…..I hated flying on them, but now it seems a little sad that they are gone! LOL
Well, if you are feeling a little sad, United still flies the CRJ-200. 😉
Not too many years ago, the CRJ200 was a reasonable choice instead of a Metro III or a Jetstream 31. One could sit in the 4 across seating and imagine what a Concorde was like.
The CRJ opened up small cities to hubs and jets.
SkyWest will just slap some United decals on these torture tubes, and they’ll live to torment another day on some EAS route. Good riddance for DL flyers, though.
I am big & tall – standing on the stair means to me looking over a CRJ200 fuselage. I was flying them at Lufthansa, UTAir and Delta. It was always a cramped feeling, but many nice trips started or ended with a CRJ 200.
I will not miss them. But again a classic less in the air.
I especially was frustrated by the first row designated (at one point) as “Comfort”. However, 2 seats were reserved for handicapped passengers and all the Medallions competed for the two other bulkhead seats. Rows 2-4 were usually blocked for potential weight issues resulting in last minute seat assignment from the gate agent. That meant if the 2 blocked first row seats weren’t used and the other blocked rows usually went to Basic Economy passengers. Seat assignment was a mess and nothing like other Delta equipment. Glad that plane is gone but its come back before. Don’t be surprised to see it again.
I have long dreaded the end of the CRJ-200. As much as I didn’t enjoy the in-flight experience, the reality is now some of the destinations I flew the CR2 to I will now be driving since frequencies dropped from 2x per day to 1x per day or even less than daily. This is going to make it really hard for people in some rural areas (like Michigan’s Upper Peninsula) to fly anywhere without driving many (4 – 8) hours to a hub.
Didn’t like them and won’t miss them. Flew them back and forth ATL to AEX, DTW to RIC, ATL to ROA, RIC to LGA. I’m 6’1″ and fairly broad shouldered. No seat was comfortable. I can count on one hand the number of times I was able to get one of the Comfort + seats. The only redeeming quality of those seats was that the FA was nice and close for easy drink refills.
Good by and good riddance.
Of course, the 200’s song dedicated to us is REO Speedwagon’s “Time for me to fly.”
Good riddance! The 200’s, 900’s and 717s eat power wheelchairs and scooters – an absolute nightmare if you rely on a mobility device because the cargo doors are small and for the 200/900s partially blocked by the engine making it very challenging for ramp staff to load mobility devices. My power chair weighs 400lbs without me in it and to jam it onboard requires it to be laid on its side and moved like tetris blocks to get it stowed.
I’m lucky in that I live with a major airport but for folks living near small airports that are only served by small planes, the cargo door size is a true barrier to flying. Similarly, god forbid I want to fly to Daytona Beach, Wichita KS, or Reno NV, I may route myself across the country just to find a larger plane going to the smaller city and forget going to / connecting at JFK/LGA from my airport bc its less than 500 miles away with RJs all the time!
Thanks for that perspective, Chris!!