Airbus A220-300

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BCS3 Airbus · Airbus A220

Airbus A220-300 at a glance

What it is: the Airbus A220-300 is a medium-range jet built by Airbus, first flown in 2015.
On the radar: it shows up as type code BCS3. How to spot it overhead.
How far it flies: about 6,700 km without stopping, cruising near 829 km/h.
How many it carries: 130–160 passengers, depending on how the airline fits out the cabin.
Power: 2× PW1500G geared turbofan, with a 35.1 m wingspan.

6,700 km

Range

829 km/h

Cruise speed

130–160+

Passengers

2015

First flight

Originally the Bombardier CSeries CS300 before Airbus took over the programme in 2018. Its geared turbofans and clean-sheet design deliver the lowest fuel burn per seat in its class. Delta, airBaltic, Air France and JetBlue fly it, and passengers rate its wide seats and big windows highly.

The story of the Airbus A220-300

Today's Airbus A220-300 started life as the Bombardier CSeries CS300, launched in July 2008. It was Canada's bold bid to enter the mainline jet market, aimed at a size the big two had largely ignored. The smaller CS100 flew first in September 2013, and the stretched CS300 followed on February 27, 2015. airBaltic began service in December 2016. The design drew praise from reviewers right from the start.

Development costs nearly broke Bombardier. A 2017 trade fight with Boeing, which sought 300 percent US import duties, pushed the company to hand majority control to Airbus in 2018. The trade case collapsed, but the ownership change was permanent. Airbus brought scale, a global sales reach and cheaper parts, and the jets were rebranded A220-100 and A220-300. Bombardier was left with only a minority stake in its own jet.

A second assembly line then opened in Mobile, Alabama, and sales accelerated sharply. The -300 took the large majority of more than 900 A220 orders. airBaltic became the first all-A220 airline, while Delta, JetBlue, Air Canada, Breeze, Air France, Swiss, Korean Air and Qantas built fleets. It burns meaningfully less fuel per seat than re-engined rivals. Passengers and pilots rate it among the best small airliners flying.

Design and engineering

The A220-300 is a clean-sheet design with two Pratt & Whitney PW1500G geared turbofans. A reduction gearbox lets the fan turn slower than the engine core, which cuts fuel burn and noise sharply. A composite wing and rear fuselage join aluminum-lithium fuselage barrels, and sidesticks control full fly-by-wire systems.

The five-abreast 2-3 cabin offers the widest economy seats and largest windows in the narrowbody segment. Pilots and passengers both rate it highly, and the A220-100 and -300 share one type rating. Airbus builds it in Canada and in Mobile, Alabama.

How to recognise the BCS3 in the wild

A modern small narrowbody with a notably pointed nose, cockpit windows that wrap with a distinctive angled lower edge, large geared-turbofan nacelles close to the ground, and winglets; the 2-3 seating shows in its slightly asymmetric-looking slim fuselage. More tells in how to identify any aircraft overhead.

Variants and close relatives

Variant	What sets it apart
A220-100	The original shorter version, formerly the CS100, seating around 100 to 135 passengers.
A220-300	The stretched best seller, formerly the CS300, seating roughly 130 to 160.
ACJ TwoTwenty	The Airbus Corporate Jets business version of the A220-100 with an executive cabin.

Major operators: Delta Air Lines, airBaltic, JetBlue Airways, Air Canada, Swiss International Air Lines - Find them in the airline database and watch their BCS3s on the live map.

Facts about the Airbus A220-300

The A220 was designed and originally certified as the Bombardier CSeries; Airbus took over the program in 2018 without paying cash for its majority stake.
A US trade case seeking 300 percent duties on the CSeries backfired, accelerating the Airbus deal and a second assembly line in Alabama.
airBaltic operates an all-A220 mainline fleet, the first airline in the world to standardize on the type.
Its Pratt & Whitney geared turbofans give the A220 a fuel burn per seat about 25 percent better than the previous-generation jets it replaces.

ICAO type code

BCS3

Manufacturer

Airbus

Capacity

130–160 passengers

Range

6,700 km

Cruise speed

829 km/h

MTOW

70,900 kg

Engines

2× PW1500G geared turbofan

Wingspan / length

35.1 m / 38.7 m

Aircraft related to the Airbus A220-300

Comparable types selected by family, manufacturer, capacity, range and generation.

A319 Airbus A319 Airbus · 124–156 passengers A20N Airbus A320neo Airbus · 150–194 passengers A320 Airbus A320 Airbus · 150–186 passengers A21N Airbus A321neo Airbus · 180–244 passengers

Tracked flights using the Airbus A220-300

These existing flight profiles list the Airbus A220-300 as typical equipment. Airlines can substitute another type on the day.

Flight	Route
MS83	CAI → LXR	Track MS83 →

More aircraft and tracking guides for the Airbus A220-300

Spot one overhead using our aircraft identification guide. Telling this maker apart from its rival is easier than it looks, as Boeing versus Airbus shows. Short-haul flying has its own economics, covered in low-cost versus full-service.

Data sources and review

Reviewed 2026-07-29 by Flight-Tracker.net Editorial Team

Airbus commercial aircraft information - manufacturer specifications and family information.
Airbus A220-300 type identity reference - model history and identity cross-checking.

Range, seating, speed and weight describe the aircraft type, not a specific airline configuration. Published figures vary by engine, weight option and cabin layout.

Read our aircraft specification sourcing and review process, or inspect the machine-readable reference dataset.

Airbus A220-300 frequently asked questions

What is the range of the Airbus A220-300?

The Airbus A220-300 has a published range of about 6,700 km, cruising at roughly 829 km/h. Real-world range depends on payload, winds and reserves.

How many passengers does the Airbus A220-300 carry?

A typical Airbus A220-300 seats 130–160 passengers, though the exact number depends on how the operating airline configures its cabin.

What is the ICAO type code for the Airbus A220-300?

The Airbus A220-300 uses the ICAO type designator BCS3. That is the code you will see when you click this aircraft type on a live flight-tracking map.

What engines does the Airbus A220-300 use?

The Airbus A220-300 is powered by 2× PW1500G geared turbofan, with a maximum takeoff weight of about 70,900 kg and a wingspan of 35.1 m.

How do you identify an Airbus A220-300?

Which airlines operate the Airbus A220-300?

Major operators in this reference profile include Delta Air Lines, airBaltic, JetBlue Airways, Air Canada, Swiss International Air Lines. Fleets change as aircraft are delivered, stored, leased and retired, so confirm current fleets with the airline.

Which tracked flights use the Airbus A220-300?

Selected scheduled services in this tracker that typically use the Airbus A220-300 include MS83. Equipment can change on the day, so the aircraft shown for each flight is a typical assignment, not a guarantee.

Is the Airbus A220-300 a narrowbody or a widebody?

The Airbus A220-300 is a narrowbody, meaning a single aisle down the middle of the cabin. With 130–160 passengers seats and 6,700 km of range it is typically flown on short and medium-haul routes.