Delta Orders 30 Boeing 787-10s, Marking Its First-Ever Dreamliner Deal
Delta Air Lines (DL) has placed a firm order for 30 Boeing 787-10 Dreamliners, with purchase rights for up to 30 additional aircraft, in a move the carrier is positioning as a long-term widebody modernization play.
Deliveries are scheduled to begin in 2031, bringing a new aircraft family into Delta’s long-haul fleet for the first time. While Delta has operated Boeing widebodies for decades—most notably the Boeing 767-300ER and 767-400ER—this is the airline’s first direct order for any 787 variant.
What Delta Is Buying
The Boeing 787-10 is the largest member of the Dreamliner family. It’s designed for high-capacity long-haul flying, trading some ultra-long-range capability for more seats and lower unit costs.
For Delta, the aircraft will be powered by GE Aerospace GEnx engines, and the airline is pairing the purchase with a services agreement aimed at supporting reliability and lifecycle costs.
Why The 787-10 Fits Delta’s Network
The 787-10 is a pragmatic choice for the type of flying Delta does most: long-haul routes where frequency and seat cost matter as much as range.
Because it’s optimized for dense international missions, the 787-10 is well-suited to transatlantic and “long-but-not-ultra-long” markets from Delta’s major hubs such as Atlanta (ATL), Detroit (DTW), Minneapolis–St. Paul (MSP), New York (JFK), Salt Lake City (SLC), and Seattle (SEA). It also offers Delta a modern, fuel-efficient widebody that can scale up capacity without requiring a jump to very large aircraft.
What This Could Mean For Delta’s Older Widebodies
Delta hasn’t specified exactly which aircraft the 787-10 will replace, but the timing is notable: deliveries starting in the early 2030s line up with the period when Delta’s oldest widebodies—particularly some 767s and earlier-generation Airbus A330s—would be deeper into their later-life economics.
In that context, the 787-10 looks like a long-range tool to keep Delta’s international fleet competitive on fuel burn, maintenance profile, and passenger experience, while also giving the airline more leverage and flexibility as it balances future Airbus and Boeing deliveries.
Bottom Line
Delta’s order for 30 Boeing 787-10s (plus rights for 30 more) is a significant fleet milestone: it brings the Dreamliner into Delta’s widebody lineup for the first time, with deliveries beginning in 2031. The 787-10’s economics make it a logical fit for Delta’s high-demand long-haul flying—especially across the Atlantic—while setting up the carrier for the next stage of widebody replacement decisions.
