Uh Oh: High Density 160-Seat Airbus A220-300 Variant In the Works

The Airbus A220 (initially known as the Bombardier CSeries), is one of my favorite commercial aircraft. The plane has a comfortable cabin with a 2-3 layout, and generally decent legroom. However, that could soon change for some airlines, thanks to an update that Airbus is working on.

Airbus plans high density Airbus A220, with 160 seats

Currently, the Airbus A220 has two variants — the A220-100 and A220-300. The larger A220-300 variant is certified for up to 149 passengers. Aircraft are certified to a maximum capacity, based on a variety of factors, including the ability to safely evacuate the plane.

There’s an interesting update when it comes to that. Airbus is planning to shortly start certification work on a new 160-seat version of the A220-300. This would be exactly the same size as the existing A220-300, with the only difference being a second set of exits over the wings, which are required in order to boost capacity in that way.

The hope is that this new version of the A220 will be certified by 2026. To be clear, airlines would have to specifically order this version of the aircraft, since the standard A220-300 will continue to have just one over wing exit. This is also separate from the rumored A220-500 that Airbus is eventually considering, which would be a stretched version of the A220-300.

This isn’t the first time that we’ve seen an aircraft manufacturer create a higher density variant of a jet, as it’s a pretty standard practice. For example, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 was evolved with the 737 MAX 8-200 variant. The jet has an extra exit near the back (like the 737 MAX 9), which boosts the plane’s maximum capacity from 178 seats to 200 seats.

This could make the A220 attractive to low cost carriers

I wouldn’t expect most full service airlines to spring for the higher density version of the A220, since they don’t need the extra capacity. However, I could see this change making the A220 more attractive for ultra low cost carriers.

Just how tight would be a 160-seat A220-300 be? airBaltic is one of the world’s largest A220 operators, and the airline has some A220-300s with 150 seats, meaning there are 30 rows, in a 2-3 configuration.

Wait, if the plane is certified for 149 passengers, how can airBaltic have a version with 150 seat? The airline just permanently blocks one middle seat on the plane, so that the maximum capacity is 149. With 150 seats, the typical seat pitch is 30″.

So if you were to add two rows, you’d be looking at seat pitch of around 28″, which is of course rough. And it’s probably even worse than that, since the second exit row would also require a bit more legroom, taking away from the overall space in the cabin.

Of course it’s possible that there are also efficiency gains elsewhere, by reducing the size of the galley and lavatories. While a 160-seat A220-300 would be less comfortable than the 149-seat version, it’s probably still more comfortable than most other planes operated by ultra low cost carriers, given the 2-3 layout. Only 20% of passengers have middle seats, compared to 33% of passengers on other aircraft, with a 3-3 layout.

One downside to increasing capacity from 150 seats to 160 seats is that an extra flight attendant will be required, increasing staffing from three to four flight attendants (one is needed for every 50 seats).

That’s not an issue if you can consistently fill those extra 10 seats with decent yields. However, very few flights are completely full (at least prior to standby passengers, etc.), so the math there will be marginal for many airlines.

Bottom line

Airbus is working on getting a new higher density version of the A220-300 certified. This will happen thanks to an extra set of exits over the wings, and it’ll boost the plane’s maximum capacity from 149 seats to 160 seats. Airlines will specifically have to order the aircraft this way, if they want the extra capacity.

This could very well make the plane more attractive to ultra low cost carriers, which have historically not shown much interest in the aircraft.

What do you make of plans for a high density A220-300?