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Delta Air Lines continues to operate a significant number of Boeing 717 aircraft, which it first began using in 2013 after acquiring them from Southwest Airlines. The planes, originally known as the MD-95, were surplus for Southwest following its acquisition of AirTran due to Southwest's exclusive use of the Boeing 737.
According to ch-aviation, Delta currently owns 80 Boeing 717s, although not all are active. At an average age of 24 years, these jets are among the oldest in Delta’s fleet. Each aircraft is configured with 110 seats: 12 recliner-style seats in first class, 20 Comfort+ seats, and 78 main cabin seats. The Boeing 717 is Delta’s second-smallest mainline aircraft after the Airbus A220-100.
Data from Cirium Diio shows that in November, Delta will deploy the Boeing 717 on 93 domestic routes. Thirty of these routes will see less than daily service with this aircraft type, and on 22 routes, the jet will be used only once or twice during the month. The airline plans an average of 398 daily two-way flights with the Boeing 717 in November, up from about 350 flights during the same period last year. This increase is partly attributed to a reduction in average flight distance by eight percent year-over-year and to the fact that Delta owns these aircraft outright, making them more economical despite higher fuel consumption and maintenance costs.
