The CEO said, “An important tool to help us achieve these goals is retiring older aircraft and modernizing our fleet as we plan for the future. Delta says it will retire its 18 widebody Boeing 777s by the end of 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Delta is shrinking in response to COVID-19 tapering passenger demand and growing the airline’s debt. Why Is Amazon Buying Converted 767 Freighters Instead Of Leasing? Delta’s oldest widebody, the 767-300ER, averages almost 24 years – and Delta has 56 of them. In a bid to accelerate the carrier’s strategy to simplify and modernize its fleet, the 18 777s will be retired by the end of the year. Delta CEO Ed Bastian announced on Thursday that the airline will permanently retire its Boeing 777 fleet by the end of the year. When it comes to aircraft, the phrase “age ain’t nothing but a number” doesn’t really apply. Eight of Delta’s 777 were delivered in 1999 - 2002. On Thursday, Delta Air Lines announced that it would be retiring its Boeing 777s early as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Boeing’s 777 Jet Is Out at Delta. All Rights Reserved, This is a BETA experience. Malaysia Airlines will tentatively be retiring their 777s as of March 2016.Via airlineroute.net, it looks like Malaysia’s last 777 flight is scheduled for March 26, 2016, between Kuala Lumpur and Guangzhou.That 777 flight will operate with the following schedule: MH376 Kuala Lumpur to Guangzhou departing 9:30AM arriving 1:35PM The industry has gone through mass furloughs, layoffs, aircraft storage and retirement,... PRESTWICK — The Antonov AN225 Mriya has touched down in Glasgow Prestwick Airport (PIK) today. The retirement will accelerate the airline’s strategy to simplify and modernize its fleet, while continuing to operate newer, more cost-efficient aircraft. The impairment cost is high since Delta owns all 18 777s. Delta Air Lines is accelerating the retirement of its Boeing 777 fleet, as the airline continues to make cost-saving measures amid the coronavirus pandemic. According to Bastian, the decision was made due to the drop in travel demand caused by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. MIAMI — Delta Air Lines took delivery of its very last factory-fresh Boeing aircraft—the 130th 737-900(ER) to join its fleet.From now on, what used to be one of Boeing’s largest customers, has only scheduled for delivery brand-new Airbus planes. Delta has more A350s on order and last year agreed to take 14 A350s from partner LATAM. The impairment charges will be in Delta’s second quarter. Enraged And Isolated, Donald Trump Still Has Sole Control Of America’s Nukes, After President Stokes Anger, Right-Wing Extremists Occupy U.S. Capitol, Russia’s Modernized Air Force Is Smaller But More Capable—Here’s What It’s Procuring Next. Airways Podcast [Ep 60]: Hawaiian Launches New Routes, Alaska Retires A320, Airways Podcast [Ep 59]: Diving into the Skift Forum, Airways Podcast [Ep 58]: Singapore Axes Some A380s, Air Canada Cancels…, Episode 57: Season 4 Kicks Off – The Airways Podcast is…, Airways Podcast [Ep 55]: COVID-19 Aviation Recap, Boeing Charged with 737 MAX Fraud, Must Pay US$2.5bn, IATA: Passenger Demand Growth Stopped Cold in November, BOC Aviation Releases Operational Data for FY 2021, Indian Regional Airlines to Watch in 2021, Air Tanzania’s Maiden Flight to Gold Town Geita, Conviasa Takes Delivery of a Larger Airbus A340, China Southern Ranks Third Largest Airline, Miami Airport Serves 1.1 Million during Winter Holidays, Hamburg Airport Totals 4.56 Million Passengers in 2020, Dublin Airport Parent Awarded Contract for New Red Sea Airport, Mass Testing for Travelers Arriving at Helsinki Airport, Boeing 777-200(ER/LR) fleet would look like with the new DeltaOne Suites, Azul Delays 59 E2 Embraer Deliveries Until 2024, Today in Aviation: First Flights of the MD-11, Latécoère 521, Former Pan Am Pilots Could Claim Millions over Airline’s Demise, Traveler: Onboard Virgin Atlantic’s Brand New Airbus A350-1000 (+Photos), The Antonov AN225 Lands in Prestwick (+Photos, Video), Virgin Atlantic Files For Chapter 15, Airline Still Safe, FAA Proposes Final Corrective Action for The Boeing 737 MAX. We’ve already accelerated the retirement plan for the MD-88 and MD-90 and parked more than 650 jet total.”. Delta is currently burning about US$50m every day, which makes the Boeing 777 retirement understandable, as it will help the airline “stem the bleeding, in its effort to safeguard Delta jobs and our future,” says the CEO. For DL, retiring a fleet “as iconic” as the 777 was not an easy decision, as Bastian noted in the memo that he understood that the move had a direct impact on many DL staff who fly, crew and service the type. The carrier has a 21-year flying legacy with the aircraft. MIAMI – Delta Air Lines (DL) has made the decision to permanently retire by the end of 2020 its Boeing 777 fleet, comprised of 18 aircraft, due to the unprecedented drop in travel demand amid the COVID-19 pandemic and global economic shutdown. Delta inherited around 30 A330s from its merger with Northwest. ... A Delta Air Lines Boeing 777-200. I have been covering airlines and aerospace in Asia-Pacific for 10 years. As a result, around 600 mainline and regional aircraft were parked. The remaining eight 777s are -200ERs that average 20 years old, but which Delta would have surely kept flying given their recent interior update. You may opt-out by. The latest travel news, views and articles from a wide range of sources and places brought to you by Business Travel Executive. Almost a quarter of a century after it rolled out of the factory, the world's first Boeing 777 is being retired at the Pima Air & Space Museum in Arizona as a travel attraction. 22 years after the first 777 carried the first passenger many Triple Sevens have reached the end of a useful service life. Prior to the withdrawal of the MD and current Boeing 777 types, the airline had already reduced about half of its active aircraft due to the COVID-19 crisis. Instead the 777s will exit Delta’s fleet by the end of this year. Secondly, the older an aircraft becomes, the more maintenance it requires. Delta plans to retire its 18 widebody Boeing 777s by the end of 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. MIAMI – Delta Air Lines (DL) has made the decision to permanently retire by the end of 2020 its Boeing 777 fleet, comprised of 18 aircraft, due to the unprecedented drop in travel demand amid the COVID-19 pandemic and global economic shutdown. Delta Air Lines Inc. plans to retire its 777 jumbo jets made by Boeing Co. and replace them with Airbus SE aircraft in another hit for the beleaguered U.S. plane maker. This is part of Delta’s strategy of simplifying and modernizing their fleet, while continuing to operate newer and more cost-efficient aircraft. Earlier than it had been planned in its retirement schedule, DL announced on April 30 that it would withdraw MD-88 and MD-90 from its fleet in an effort to reduce its capacity systemwide. MIAMI - 2020 has been a year like no other for aviation. 77Es and 773s also face the axe, with pre-2000-build frames have a tough time to find a new operator. Ten of the 18 777s are -200LR models that average 11 years old. Delta expects to book a $1.4 billion-$1.7 billion non-cash impairment for the 18 777s and 27 MD-90s it will also retire. The Atlanta-based carrier will remove its 18 777-200s by year-end on expectations of a long and slow recovery in international travel after the crisis, Delta CEO Ed Bastian told staff in a memo on Thursday. The company says the retirement will accelerate the airline’s strategy to simplify and modernise its fleet, while continuing to operate newer, more cost-efficient aircraft. Delta also owns all 27 MD-90s, but these average almost 23 years and are smaller aircraft, likely contributing much less to the impairment. I have been covering airlines and aerospace in Asia-Pacific for 10 years. Influence in The World. MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Delta Air Lines is permanently retiring its Boeing 777 fleet by the end of the year, the company announced Thursday. Marana, Arizona is where aircraft go to retire but some airlines are sending their jets there to ride out the COVID-19 crisis affecting the industry. Delta’s 18 … Based in Miami, Florida. I am originally from New York City, graduated from the University of Melbourne, and now live in Hong Kong. I am particularly interested in aeropolitics, cross-border investments, partnerships. It also expects a future “immaterial” cash expenditure related to the impairment. Direct ownership gives it flexibility to determine retirement compared to leasing an aircraft and waiting for the contract to end or paying an early return fee. Delta said the 777 fleet included 18 aircraft. On March 13, Bastian announced a 40% reduction in overall capacity for the foreseeable future, the airline’s largest at the time since the 9/11 attacks, in order to minimize costs for the carrier. Delta to retire Boeing 777 from fleet Air Traveller PH Staff May 15, 2020. A Global Review of Commercial Flight since 1994: the leading Commercial Aviation publication in North America and 35 nations worldwide. The early retirement comes at a cost. Unlike Delta, American and United also acquired the more modern and efficient 777-300ER. Yet, on a more recent and hopeful note for the company, just last week, DL and the LATAM Airlines Group and its affiliates signed a trans-American Joint Venture Agreement that will marry the airlines’ complementary route networks throughout the Americas. Here’s Why That’s No Reason to Sell the Stock. Do you think that the aviation industry will recover by 2024? Delta is shrinking in response to … That is only mid-life for a widebody aircraft. Having a newer variant can incentivize American and United to keep some of their older 777-200s since pilots and some parts can be pooled across the types. About half of Delta’s 777 fleet is still relatively young, likely driving the impairment cost although Delta did not state a breakdown. Delta ordered the Boeing 737-900(ER) three times—100 planes in August 2011, further 20 in December 2015, and 10 more in April 2017. Delta Air Lines said it would retire its Boeing 737-700 fleet as well as “portions” of its Boeing 767-300ER and Airbus A320 fleets this year. Firstly, as technology develops, newer aircraft of similar size and range achieve higher rates of fuel efficiency. Only last year Delta finished a $100 million upgrade on the 777 to install new suites with doors in business class, introduce a premium economy cabin and place mood lighting through the plane, an interior meant to last for eight years or longer. Since 2017 Delta has built-up a fleet of 13 A350s, which have around 21% lower seat costs than the older 777s. Delta installed a premium economy cabin on the 777s. According to the memo, parking the Boeing 777 fleet will provide significant cost savings over the next several years, in addition to closing the tap on DL’s cash hemorrhage. Delta Air Lines said Thursday that it will no longer use Boeing Co.'s 777 aircraft as it attempts to reduce costs and preserve cash amid a plunge in traffic from the coronavirus pandemic. According to Bastian, reducing DL’s cash bleeding means that for the next two to three years, the airline will have a smaller network, fleet and operation in response to the substantially reduced customer demand. Delta’s CEO Ed Bastian states today in an internal memo that the airline continues to take action to protect Delta’s cash, jobs, and future, … A crowd gathered around the airport to watch the largest aircraft... © Copyright 2020 Airways International, Inc. All rights reserved. Delta expects to record impairment charges of $1.4 billion to $1.7 billion as a result of the aircraft retirements. It is therefore understood from today’s memo that once international demand returns, taking over DL’s Boeing 777-200’s long-haul operation, including that from the new trans-American network agreement, are the carrier’s more fuel-efficient and cost-effective Airbus A330 and A330-900. The Atlanta-based carrier said that the move is intended to make Delta “a smaller, more efficient airline over … Delta's refurbished 777 included new seats with doors in business class. As a response to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, Delta Air Lines will be retiring its Boeing 777 aircraft from the fleet, leaving the Airbus A350 as its lone ultra-long-range aircraft. The CEO wrote, “The 777 played an important role with Delta since 1999, allowing us to open new long-haul markets and grow our international network as we transformed into a global airline. Delta’s CEO Ed Bastian states today in an internal memo that the airline continues to take action to protect Delta’s cash, jobs, and future, mentioning that the carrier’s principal financial goal was to reduce its cash burn to zero by the end of the year.