Delta Air Lines, in collaboration with leasing company Azorra, is set to dismantle an Airbus A220. The aircraft initially entered service with Egyptair six years ago but was quickly removed from their fleet.
Azorra and Delta Material Services (DMS) describe the action as a strategic move to dismantle the Airbus A220-300. The primary objective of the disassembly is to recover components that can benefit Delta Air Lines’ own fleet, among others. Reportedly, the engines have already been removed from the aircraft to support Delta, as per the contract.
Currently, the spare part market for Airbus A220 parts is very tight. Since the introduction of the ‘game-changing’ PW1500G engines, they have frequently been in the news for negative reasons. The issues primarily relate to the so-called “geared turbofan technology”, which is designed to deliver high engine performance. Consequently, a significant portion of aircraft equipped with these engines require inspection.
‘We have strong confidence in the Airbus A220, which remains a highly valuable and important asset for Azorra. Dismantling this used airframe and repurposing its engines is a creative solution that will create long-term opportunities for the A220 to continue thriving,’ stated Ron Baur, CEO of Azorra.
Desert Sand
In February 2018, Egyptair placed an order for twelve A220s, then known as CS300, with Bombardier. The aircraft, registered as SU-GFA/I and SU-GFX/Z, began joining Egyptair’s fleet from November 2019 on. The final A220 was added to their fleet in June 2022. However, within just under two years, all these aircraft had already left.
According to the airline’s CEO, the aircraft was not well-suited to the African climate and the large amounts of desert sand. This same explanation was corroborated by Air Baltic, who also noted that the market for spare engines was gradually improving. Consequently, Egyptair decided to sell its entire A220 fleet to the American leasing company Azorra Aviation. Azorra primarily operates in the leasing sector.