What is Delta's smallest plane?
Which Aircraft is Delta’s Smallest?
At present, Delta Airlines has a fleet size of more than a hundred aircraft, and it uses various types of aircraft to meet various types of routes and passenger traffic. Whereas the Airbus A330 and the Boeing B767-400 are used for wide-body operation for long-haul international operations, the regional jets and turboprops are used for short-hop regional operations. However, do you want to know the type of aircraft in Delta’s fleet which is considered to be the smallest one?
The oldest aircraft now in Delta’s fleet is Bombardier Aerospace, specifically the Bombardier CRJ-200 regional jet. At a seating capacity of roughly fifty passengers, the CRJ-200 is a stubby, twin-engine regional jet that is most commonly utilized for short hops of fewer than three hundred miles.
Some key specs and details on Delta's CRJ-200s:
- Seating capacity: This plane model can accommodate 50 passengers (depending on the configuration).
- Length: 87 feet 10 inches
- Wingspan: 76 feet, 3 inches
- Cruising speed: 530 mph
- Range: About 1,500 kilometers with a full load
- Engines: Two General Electric CF34 turbofans; the aircraft was powered, as we will see, and the passenger complement was provided, as we will also see.
- Maximum takeoff weight: The loss that the company incurred came to 51,000 pounds.
Lacking a middle block and having just one aisle, the CRJ-200 in particular is a regional jet with a 3-2 seat arrangement. This makes it evident that the seats are closely placed and legroom space is limited; therefore, more emphasis is placed on getting the passengers to their destination within the shortest time possible rather than making long-haul journeys comfortable. Due to the low passenger capacity and operating costs, it will be suitable for filling gaps in markets that have not been served before.
Why Such A Small Jet?
Delta especially uses the CRJ-200 to help feed passengers from the many small towns into the larger hubs in the network. Being a global network airline with main hubs in cities such as Atlanta, Detroit, and Minneapolis, Delta heavily depends on regional jets such as the CRJ-200 to feed passengers from the adjacent communities into these hubs to continue their journey on Delta Aircraft and carriers.
Several other connecting routes within small towns and various cities in Delta’s network could not sustain the use of large planes. However, by operating a powerful regional airline that is tailored for short hauls, such as the CRJ-200, Delta can make its money where larger aircraft cannot. Delta’s international wide-body planes receive much attention and rightly so, whereas the small CRJ-200 is equally important to bring small-town USA into the larger air transport system.
Outsourcing to Regional Partners
It is, however, important to note that Delta does not own these planes despite them bearing its logos and colors; it leases these aircraft from other companies, in this case, the CRJ-200. However, to offer CRJ-200s, Delta has direct arrangements with several regional airlines that own the aircraft and fly them on behalf of Delta using capacity leasing agreements.
Delta connections partners that fly CRJ-200s under contract include:
- Endeavor Air: It is a subsidiary of Delta with 100% ownership.
- SkyWest Airlines
- Republic Airways
This strategy helps the firm manage flights through outsourcing and not directly own aircraft by outsourcing them from regional experts. In this case, all the flying, pilot employment, and maintenance of the planes are handled by the regional airlines under certain legal rules governed by Delta.
Replacement Plans
While the CRJ-200 is useful, Delta has been working at upgrading their regional carriers away from the 50-seat aircraft. Today, Delta is gradually cutting the number of its contracted CRJ-200s and replacing them with more spacious 76-seat regional aircraft, such as the Embraer E-175 offered by partners including SkyWest.
Indeed, in the year 2018, Delta was able to take out over one hundred sixty-five CRJ-200 aircraft from its entire operations. This type is planned to be gradually phased out in the following years and, eventually, completely removed from the fleet. Hence, while the CRJ-200 remains Delta’s smallest aircraft to date, the company’s future holds little place for this particular aircraft type.
However, over 80 CRJ-200s are still in service at Delta for short-haul work in 2019, which shows that the regional jet is still an essential part of the company. Even when the big guns of long-haul like the A350 or 747 come into play, it's the CRJ-200, which is the workhorse that forms the crux of Delta’s domestic operations. Well next time you see a small regional jet emblazoned with the Delta logo, don’t be surprised if it is Delta’s smallest plane doing some of the largest lifts.
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