Qantas starts Wellington-Brisbane flights on new Airbus A220

The new Airbus A220 started its first international flights for Qantas today, operating a regular Wellington-Brisbane service.

It touched down in New Zealand at 3.15pm and was sprayed with plumes of water for a ceremonial “water salute” from firefighters.

Qantas said the single-aisle A220-300, called Platypus, was half as noisy and used 25% less fuel than comparable previous generation aircraft.

The airline had 11 in service and was having another 11 delivered this year.

QantasLink chief operating officer Nick Collie said the A220s were made in Canada, at the Airbus plant at Mirabel near Montreal.

“I was there in November and they’re keeping the production line alive,” he told the Herald during the flight.

“It’s a spacious cabin and a nice layout,” said Collie, who is also a pilot.

He said other carriers using the A220 included Delta and JetBlue.

Qantas had some input into layout and avionics for those in its fleet.

“It’s a really good aircraft for the economics for smaller point-to-point populations.”

A similar size aircraft was the Embraer E190.

“The E190 is about 100 seats. This is about 137,” Collie said.

Qantas said the new Airbus had a range of more than 6000km, almost double that of its Boeing 717 predecessors.

Airbus said the A220’s overhead bins had the largest stowage capacity in their class.

Quieter and more fuel-efficient than comparable earlier models, the A220 also has a different economy seating configuration from many other airliners. Photo / John Weekes

Associate Minister of Transport James Meager said the airline using the A220 on the Wellington–Brisbane route was a strong vote of confidence in New Zealand and its aviation sector.

“Investments like this help keep our country competitive, well connected, and open for new opportunities.”

Qantas last September announced it would use A220s on the route.

About the same time, its stablemate Jetstar announced a big transtasman expansion with new Hamilton-Christchurch and Brisbane-Queenstown flights.

Wellington Airport chief executive Matt Clarke said the A220 was a state-of-the-art aircraft.

QantasLink recently took delivery of its 11th A220, with four more expected to join the fleet by mid-year.

The aircraft are expected to open up new direct Australian domestic and short-haul international routes.

The aircraft seated 137 passengers, with 10 in business class and 127 in economy.

The new aircraft has a 2-2 seating configuration in business class, and a 3-2 layout on rows in economy. Photo / Qantas

The aircraft has two Pratt & Whitney PW1500 engines, is 38.7m long and has a cruising speed of Mach 0.82.

“This next-generation aircraft is significantly quieter and fuel efficient, giving travellers a more comfortable and sustainable way to fly,” Brisbane Airport chief executive Gert-Jan Graaff said today.

“For communities under flight paths, that means quieter arrivals and departures, bringing a noticeable reduction in the day-to-day impact of aircraft noise.”

Qantas said the A220 had the largest windows of any narrowbody aircraft, and fast, free Wi-Fi.

It will compete with Air New Zealand on the route between New Zealand’s capital and Brisbane.

The aircraft will fly up to three times a week between the two cities.

The flights take about three-and-a-half to four hours.

The return flight to Brisbane, QF282, left for Australia at 4.43pm.

John Weekes is a business journalist covering aviation and courts. He has previously covered consumer affairs, crime, politics and courts.

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