Two weeks ago, Delta Air Lines placed an order for 30 Boeing 787-10 widebody aircraft with options for 30 more. Aviation watchdog JonNYC, who had previously leaked Delta’s plan for this order, told us at Delta wasn’t done aircraft shopping and to an expect an order of Airbus widebodies also.
I acknowledged that the A330-900 was the most likely purchase but suggested that they could place an order for Airbus A350-900s also. I did not expect the order to come this quickly, but Delta has now announced:
- 16 Airbus A330-900s
- 15 Airbus A350-900s
On January 27, 2026, Delta Air Lines, Inc. (“Delta”) entered into a definitive agreement with Airbus S.A.S. to purchase 16 Airbus A330-900 aircraft and 15 Airbus A350-900 aircraft, with an option to purchase up to an additional 20 widebody aircraft. Deliveries of the aircraft will begin in 2029. The A330-900 aircraft will be powered by the Trent 7000 engine and the A350-900 aircraft will utilize the Trent XWB-84 EP engine, both manufactured by Rolls-Royce.
Airbus A350-900, Credit: Delta
Delta A350-900
Boeing 787-10s are largely a 767 replacement. These deliveries don’t start until 2031. Delta needs planes earlier than that and the Airbus A330-900 plugs that gap, and adds to an existing fleet. And they needed a plan to replace Airbus A330-200s and -300s as well.
Meanwhile, the Airbus A350-900 gives Delta greater range than the 787-10s they’ve ordered and gets about 1,000 nautical miles more range than the A330-900 so it’s a good workhorse for long Asia and Africa routes. They already have 41 Airbus A350-900s.
