Snapshot Review: Delta First Class, Salt Lake City to San Francisco - Airbus A220

After arriving onboard Delta’s A321 aircraft from Las Vegas, we had a short connection (around one hour) at Salt Lake City which I was a little worried about making. Something that I shouldn’t have been - read more here.

The next flight took place on one of Delta’s newest short haul narrowbody aircraft type - the Airbus A220, formerly the Bombardier C-Series Jet. It is widely considered to be a transformative aircraft for short haul routes which have too little demand for a larger A320 or 737 but a turboprop aircraft would be too small or not serve enough range.

Here’s a look at the experience aboard Delta’s A220 - this flight was taken in April 2022.

We had a late night departure from Salt Lake City - my favourite airport in the United States.

I only managed to get one decent nighttime shot of the aircraft. It looks noticeably smaller than alternative aircraft that ply this route.

Boarding took place swiftly and on-time - and it couldn’t come sooner with a late arrival into the Bay Area. The airline seems proud of their plethora of awards that they place them next to the entrance door - although I didn’t recognise some of the accolades.

These seats are extremely familiar as they’re the same or very similar to the ones found on my previous flight on the Airbus A321. The cabin itself felt very dark particularly next to the window and either felt like lighting was:

a) off along the outer part of the cabin

b) the open overhead bins were blocking the lights

c) didn’t exist near the window

If you know the reason, drop a comment below.

Two Delta branded bottles of water were found on arrival at the seat - a nice touch for a short flight.

While I couldn’t see much out of them, the windows on this aircraft are huge - up to fifty percent larger than on A320 aircraft.

We settled in for the two hours hop to San Francisco in relative luxury for a short haul service. The seats are recliner style providing excellent support and sufficient comfort on short haul routes. I would be quite comfortable flying this on a route as long as five to six hours.

Legroom in row one was excellent and provided enough room to place my legs without hitting my feet constantly on the bulkhead.

I found the table that pops out the arm rest plenty supportive to tap away on a laptop from. It did bounce a little if too much pressure was applied but that was only a niggling issue. WiFi was available on this flight but I opted to work offline.

Food service was basic and consisted of pre-packaged junk food - while I will never refuse a Biscoff, it baffles me how the seat can be so good on American carriers but the food awful.

In-flight entertainment, despite not using it, was brilliant and slightly better than my previous flight thanks to the larger and better display. All the same content was available here including live domestic TV channels which I always find a novelty. The inclusion of extensive information about the aircraft and route is equally great.

One of the biggest positives about the A220 is the large bathrooms. While it’s never going to be as big as a widebody aircraft, they are impressively sized and I could easily stand in it without hitting my head. Delta fit them out with the good quality Malin+Goetz soap and moisturiser as with the rest of the fleet. The crew kept the bathroom relatively clean throughout.

Concluding thoughts

While airfares are still soaring prices in the US, alongside with the inbuilt premium for First Class, the Delta domestic First Class product represents fair value. The seat is pleasant to sit on, the in-flight entertainment is second-to-none while this specific aircraft is a thoughtfully designed providing a more modern experience for the seasoned traveller. My criticisms of Delta’s First Class product stand from my more extensive A321 review, namely food is in dire need of improvement. This is unlikely to happen any time soon since their direct competitors, American, United and Alaska, offer similar service. If prices were reasonable, I would certainly consider flying First Class on Delta’s A220 again in the future.