The seats and tables and lavs and closets are all already approved and in other aircraft. The Big seat NBA airplane are not going to use an unapproved new innovative seat that was created just for our transcontinental product. Besides they are not 121 airframes. They are corporate and possibly charter planes.

All of our charter flights are conducted under part 121, per the FOM and our Ops Specs.

I’m not saying that the custom interiors are guaranteed to be delayed in certification. But I’m not holding my breath on these aircraft being in service anytime soon after the orders were just placed last fall.

121 for continuity of operation, yes but there's no FAA mandate that they even be operated 135 if the are used solely by the NBA and the NBA owns them. I doubt they will be delayed for anything especially interiors, but I have no idea where they lie in the airbus delivery calendar.

They’re not used solely by the NBA.

Yes but they are never used in part 121 passenger operations. The NBA charters them out to other sports leagues, but in the way a business that owns a private jet might lease it out during what otherwise be time the jet is unused.

Per the July 2024 filing with the DOT, they’re all going to be placed on the Delta operating certificate (as the charter 757s currently are). Our Ops Specs require that they be operated under part 121.

You are correct but what if Delta and the NBA part ways. The NBA owns the jets and can find another operator. I'm not sure what we are talking about anymore. I think any charter business Delta does with someone else's equipment is opportunistic at best and not part of the core business, but I hope we continue it because it's union jobs at a major airline rate.

its a small part of the business but I asked a network guy about it who was on the Jumpseat for some special project. He said the charter side is a HUGE moneymaker for the airline.

From an ER pilot perspective it’s almost like a little side hustle that spices up the big packet every once in a while. I end up doing them very rarely but they’re kind of neat to do occasionally. It sort of feels like a-coding an Air Force OST. Hope they stay around.

I tried that side hustle once on a GIG layover. It got weird.

She has a name. 75-4 is Christine. Christine is a spiteful b!tch. You have no idea wtf it's going to respond to your inputs with and your visibility is limited. Also, sometimes she bodyslams you. What you don't want, is her to give you the peoples elbow during push roll power stabilize