Eagerly awaited by many airlines, Airbus is finally about to start flying the A321XLR, its super trump…
The A321XLR is a modified version of the Airbus A321neo, created on the basis of the A321LR project, which already had an increased flight range due to the installation of additional fuel tanks in the aircraft hold. The newest version, the XLR, goes even further, with a range of up to 8,700 km, which is more than the 7,250 km of the Boeing 757-200, carrying almost the same number of passengers, but with much lower fuel consumption.
Proof of this is that the aircraft has over 200 confirmed orders, in addition to hundreds of options or flexible orders in which the airline will in the future choose between the A321neo, A321LR or A321XLR, demonstrating the modularity of the Airbus platform. which increases the range by 15%, respectively, between each model.
The first aircraft of the XLR series was spotted outside the Hamburg plant by photographer Tobias Gudat. It’s unpainted and unengineered, but it already has serial number 11000, along with decals designating the A321 XLR and its optional center-rear fuel tank.
Airbus plans to certify this variant by the end of next year so that it goes into service in 2023. So far, no Brazilian airline has ordered a model that can fly direct from Sao Paulo to Miami.
