aviation

The  rst of Delta Air Lines’ A220-100s

rolled out the painting hangar at the A

 nal assembly line in Mirabel, Québec in

mid-September. Delta will be  rst US-based

airline to take delivery of the A220, formerly

known as the Bombardier C Series.

Larry Cato, a programme manager on

Delta’s  eet management team, was on site

for the occasion and said: “There’s nothing

like seeing years of planning come together

in the shape of a freshly painted aircraft. It’s

a major milestone for the future of our  eet.”

The aircraft is now undergoing a series of

pre- ight tests in the A220  ight line hangar

at Mirabel before embarking on its  rst  ight

later this year.

Delta said the process of painting the

aircraft took nine days, 200 rolls of masking

tape and 165 gallons of paint to complete.

Its  rst A220 is scheduled to enter service in

early 2019.

First View of a Delta A

Delta’s  rst A220-100 rolled out of the

painting hangar at the Airbus A220  nal

assembly line in Mirabel, Québec in

September. Patrick Desrochers

Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning aircraft

landed on the deck of the Royal Navy’s

new aircraft carrier, HMS Queen Elizabeth,

for the  rst time on September 28. The

two American aircraft were  own by Royal

Navy Commander Nathan Gray and

RAF Squadron Leader Andy Edgell, who

made history by landing on the deck of

Britain’s newest carrier. Shortly afterwards,

Commander Gray became the  rst pilot to

take off from the ship’s ski ramp.

The milestones marked the start of more

than 500 take-offs and landings set to take

place from the warship over the next 11

weeks. Night  ying is already under way.

Commander Gray said: “No words can explain

how it felt to turn the corner at 500mph and

see HMS Queen Elizabeth awaiting the arrival

of her  rst F-35 jets. I feel incredibly privileged.

“For a naval aviator it is always a special

moment when you spot the carrier in the

distance, hidden within a grey expanse of

ocean. HMS Queen Elizabeth is a  oating

city, home to hundreds of fellow sailors and

Royal Marines, and it’s been a particularly

poignant day.”

The carrier is currently off the US east

coast conducting  ying trials – the jets will

be put through their paces over the coming

weeks in a range of sea and weather

conditions. British aircraft will land on the

deck of HMS Queen Elizabeth when it

returns to the UK.

The commanding officer of the aircraft

carrier, Captain Jerry Kyd, said: “I am

quite emotional to be here in HMS Queen

Elizabeth seeing the return of  xed-wing

aviation, having been the captain of the

aircraft carrier which launched the last

Harrier at sea nearly eight years ago. The

regeneration of big deck carriers able

to operate globally, as we are proving

here on this deployment, is a major step

forward for the United Kingdom’s defence

and our ability to match the increasing

pace of our adversaries. The  rst touch-

downs of these impressive stealth jets

shows how the United Kingdom will

continue to be world leaders at sea for

generations to come.”

HMS Queen Elizabeth is on track to

deploy on global operations from 2021.

Meanwhile, the UK has now taken delivery

of 16 out of the planned 138 F-35 aircraft.

The  rst F-35 landings on the Royal Navy’s

HMS Queen Elizabeth took place on

September 28. Crown Copyright

First F-35 Landings on

HMS Queen Elizabeth

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HEADLINES

Aviation News incorporating Jets November 2018