Delta brings back GENIUS plan to beat Trump's tariffs for delivery of new Airbus

Delta Air Lines has found a way to beat Donald Trump's tariffs. The airline is taking delivery of a new Airbus A350 aircraft this week, manufactured in Europe. However, instead of flying it directly to the US, it is taking it from the factory in Toulouse to Tokyo, Japan. Reportedly, the plan is to keep it flying internationally without landing in the US. This way, it won't remain new, and Delta won't have to pay tariffs. 

The Airbus with tail number N528DN, is scheduled to operate flight DAL 9936 on Wednesday from Toulouse at 11:10 am CEST (5:10 am ET) and reach Tokyo on Thursday, 1 May, at 9:50 am (12:20 am ET). What happens next with the plane is not known, although Delta might keep it flying internationally. It might land in the US and then leave, and hence would not qualify as "imported".

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Delta used the same plan the first time Trump was at the White House to avoid tariffs during his first tenure. 

As per Trump's tariffs, a 10 per cent tariff will be levied on imports, including Airbus jets manufactured in Europe. This would rise to 20 per cent if the reciprocal tariffs kick in, which right now are on a 90-day pause. 

Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian had earlier said that the airline "won’t be paying tariffs on any aircraft deliveries".

"We are working very closely with Airbus, which is the only aircraft manufacturer we’ve got deliveries coming from for the balance of this year. We’ll do our very best to minimise tariffs, but we are very clear that we won’t be paying tariffs on any aircraft deliveries we take," Bastian stated.

"These – the times are pretty uncertain, and if you start to put a 20% incremental cost on top of an aircraft, it gets very difficult to make that math work. So, we've been clear with Airbus on that, and we'll work through and see what happens from that."

Delta operates a fleet of 36 Airbus A350-900s and has an order in place for 15 more. Twenty Airbus A350-1000s are also set for delivery next year. Airbus A350-900 aircraft have a listed cost of $308 million, and A350-1000s are listed for $355 million.