Coming out of the latest financial reports from Delta, several news outlets noticed that Delta has plans to continue to acquire used MD-90’s for their fleet.  Unlike almost any other airline, Delta has found a use for these aircraft that beats the economics of the 737-800. 

Surely the low acquisition costs and high reliability of these aircraft make a good case for their purchase.  The MD-90 is a half generation newer than the MD-80 aircraft flying out there and since most were produced in the mid to late 1990’s, they have plenty of life left in them to be used for an economical period of time.   It’s clear that Delta prefers to bridge the gap between the current offerings of Boeing and Airbus and what future aircraft that may come along late in the next decade.

Filed under: Airline Fleets, Airline News by ajax