The first Airbus A220 designed for Air France recently left the Airbus paint shop in Mirabel, near Montreal, ahead of its introduction at the end of September. The plane is the first of 60 fuel-efficient Airbus A220-300s the airline has ordered to replace Airbus A318s and A319s for use on its short and medium-haul network.

At the reveal, the new plane showed off the new Air France colours and notably featured the winged seahorse, the airline’s historical symbol embodying its rich history, at the front of the fuselage.

As it is made with lighter composite materials, the Airbus A220 uses 20% less fuel than previous generation aircraft and has a 34% reduced noise footprint.

Air France says the A220s will play a decisive role in achieving the company’s sustainable development objectives, including a 50% reduction in CO2 emissions in absolute terms on the domestic network from Paris-Orly and on inter-regional routes by 2024, and a 50% reduction in CO2 emissions per passenger/km by 2030.

Before joining Paris to carry Air France customers, the aircraft will undergo a series of ground and in-flight tests. On its arrival, it will be used for more than a month to train the airline’s flight crews, some of whom began the so-called “type rating” process last summer.

The Air France Airbus A220 will be able to accommodate 148 passengers in a 3-2 cabin configuration. Each seat will be equipped with type A and type C USB ports and all passengers will have Wi-Fi access from their personal devices.