Summary
- ITA Airways has received its fifth A220-300 aircraft, which arrived in Rome after a stopover at London Stansted Airport before departing from Airbus Canada's facilities in Montreal.
- The A220-300 spent about an hour on the ground at Stansted before continuing its journey to Rome Fiumicino Airport, where it arrived at 04:36.
- ITA Airways primarily operates its A220-300s on domestic routes within Italy, with destinations including Bologna, Genoa, Naples, Trieste, Turin, and Venice.
On August 26th, a brand new Airbus A220-300 touched down at Rome Leonardo da Vinci Fiumicino Airport and became ITA Airways' 5th A220 and 75th aircraft overall. The jet departed Airbus Canada's assembly facilities in Montreal on August 25th and flew into the evening with a midnight stopover at London's Stansted Airport.
Stopover in Stansted
The brand new A220-300 bearing registration EH-HHM departed Mirabel Airport (YMX) at 12:49 as flight AZ8020. Bound for London Stansted (STN), the jet arrived at the UK airport at 00:23 local time with a flight duration of six hours and 34 minutes. FlightRadar24.com data indicates that the plane spent about an hour on the ground before departing for its new home at Rome Fiumicino (FCO). It arrived at the Italian airport at 04:36.
As per data from Aviation Flights, the jet was first spotted on August 9th at Mirabel, conducting an engine run and taxi check. The jet's first flight was on August 14th, with Airbus Canada performing a total of three test flights before the delivery flight. Its total test flight time was seven hours and 52 minutes. Notably, this is ITA Airways' very first all-blue A220.
The aircraft used Canadian test registration C-FPGI and had the manufacturer's serial number (MSN) 55235.
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Where is ITA flying its A220s?
Based in Rome, it appears the ITA's A220-300s are primarily flying domestic services across Italy. Destinations from FCO, according to FlightRadar24.com, include:
- Bologna (BLQ)
- Genoa (GOA)
- Naples (NAP)
- Trieste (TRS)
- Turin (TRN)
- Venice (VCE)
ITA's 75-aircraft-strong fleet
This latest arrival is the Italian carrier's fifth A220-300 - an aircraft type that first joined the fleet in September 2022, entering service the month after. But the airline has been taking delivery of several other aircraft types.
Indeed, ITA Airways' fleet has grown substantially over the past 21 months. One of its primary goals has been to present itself as being more sustainable, although this has the added benefit of reducing fuel and maintenance costs. To this end, the carrier has been aiming to build a modern and efficient fleet.
There have been a lot of 'first arrivals' for ITA Airways in recent times. Its first Airbus A320neo arrived earlier this year, in April. The carrier now has eight of these newer narrowbodies. The airline's first A330neo was then delivered the following month, making for a fleet of four.
One future type/variant that will soon join ITA is the Airbus A321neo. Aviation Flights data indicates that at least two airframes are currently 'in the works.' These are aircraft with Airbus MSNs 11657 and 11561. Both aircraft have been spotted in primer at Airbus' facilities at Hamburg Finkenwerder (XFW) without their engines installed.
Have you flown with ITA Airways yet, particularly its A220s? Share your experience with the airline by leaving a comment!
Sources: Planespotters.net, FlightRadar24.com, Aviation Flights
Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying ITA Airways
- IATA/ICAO Code:
- AZ/ITY
- Airline Type:
- Full Service Carrier
- Hub(s):
- Rome Fiumicino Airport
- Year Founded:
- 2020
- Alliance:
- SkyTeam
- CEO:
- Fabio Lazzerini
- Country:
- Italy
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