Delta Air Lines (DL, Atlanta Hartsfield Jackson) is reportedly in talks with Airbus to defer the delivery of 40 aircraft, initially due in 2020, "beyond" year-end, sources told Bloomberg newswire.

Both the carrier and the manufacturer declined to comment on the specifics of the report. The sources did not go into details as to the composition of the deferrals variant-wise.

According to the ch-aviation fleets advanced module, the carrier has a total of 231 outstanding orders from Airbus, comprising fourteen A220-100s, fifty A220-300s, twenty-five A321-200s, 100 A321-200Ns, thirty A330-900s, and twelve A350-900s. According to its annual report for 2019, Delta Air Lines also has fifty options for A220-300s and 100 options for A321-200Ns. The airline also has firm orders for three more CRJ900ERs but has no commitments from Boeing or other manufacturers. The carrier's aircraft purchase commitments also include four A350-900s from LATAM Airlines (LA, Santiago de Chile Int'l).

The airline's deliveries plan for 2020, as reported at the end of 2019, included a total of 72 aircraft - seventeen A220-100s, six -300s, thirty-one A321-200s, one A321-200N, seven A330-900s, four A350-900s, and six CRJ900s. Of these, only twelve have so far been delivered, namely three A220-100s, six A321-200s, one A330-900, and two A350-900s.

In a separate development, the airline is also reportedly in talks about a sale-and-leaseback transaction potentially involving five A321-200s, two A350-900s, and two A330-900s. If completed, this deal will bolster the airline's coffers with an extra USD750 million.