Iraqi Airways Receives Fifth and Final Airbus A220 Delivery

Iraqi Airways has taken delivery of its fifth and final Airbus A220-300 aircraft.

The narrow-body jet, registered as YI-ARH, arrived at Baghdad International Airport (BGW), Iraq, following a one-stop journey from Montreal Mirabel International Airport (YMX), Canada. The Airbus A220 stopped at Oslo Gardermoen Airport (OSL).

In total, the aircraft spent 12 hours and 11 minutes in the air while flying from the Airbus A220 Final Assembly Line (FAL) in Mirabel, Canada, to Baghdad, the capital of Iraq, where the latest Iraqi Airways jet landed on August 27, 2023.

According to ch-aviation.com data, the aircraft operated its first flight on August 4, 2023.

Iraqi Airways placed the order for the five Airbus A220-300 aircraft, then known as the Bombardier CSeries, in December 2013. A month prior, Bombardier and the airline signed a Letter of Intent (LoI), as Iraqi Airways sought to purchase a total of 16 aircraft of the type, including 11 options.

“The CS300 aircraft’s range, fuel efficiency and comfortable, widebody-like cabin will permit us to respond to growing passenger demand and reach destinations across the Middle East, Northern Africa and Europe,” Saad Al-Khafaji, the Chief Executive Officer and Director General of Iraqi Airways, said at the time.

Airbus acquired 50.1% shares in the CSeries program in October 2017, renaming the CSeries aircraft to the Airbus A220 in July 2018, with the Canadian plane maker completely exiting the A220 program in February 2020.

The Mirabel FAL delivered the previous four Iraqi Airways A220s between November 2021 and January 2023, ch-aviation.com data shows. The airline is the only air carrier that ordered and received this type in the Middle East, according to Airbus Orders & Deliveries filings for July 2023.

Previously, Iraqi Airways had to deal with the groundings of the type. The Iraq Civil Aviation Authority (ICAA) issued an order to ground the Airbus A220 in May 2023. The ICAA’s order came after the airline experienced issues with the Pratt & Whitney PW1500G engine, exclusively used to power the Airbus A220 aircraft.

Since, the airline has resumed flying two of its Airbus A220s, registered as YI-ARE and YI-ARF. The other two, registered as YI-ARG and YI-ARI, last flew in April and May 2023, respectively.