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AA Orders 50 Airbus A321XLR at 2019 Paris Airshow

Old Jun 19, 2019, 9:33 am
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AA Airbus A321XLR
merican ordered 50 Airbus A321XLR at the June Paris Airshow held at Paris - Le Bourget airport. 30 of these replace previously ordered A321neo, 20 are new orders. These will largely fulfill the roles of the departing Boeing 757-200. Airbus announced first deliveries of the XLR to start in 2023.

The Airbus A321XLR will reportedly have over 90% compatibility with, and will use the same basic engines as, the A321neo. With a range at ~101 metric tons of up to 4,700 nm, @5% more than the A321LR, the longest range of any narrowbody commercial aircraft. The aircraft will offer a 30% fuel savings compared to current comparable aircraft.



The aircraft can accommodate 180-220 passengers in two class configuration. AA is reported by several sources as seeking to fly these with all aisle access lie flat bed seats in Business, Premium Economy. Routing is expected to include East Coast - Europe lower demand routes, and likely South America.

American will take delivery of their A321XLRs over the following timeframe...: 8 in 2023, 22 in 2024, 20 in 2025 - OMAT

Launch customers for the A321XLR were Steven F. Udvar-Hzys Air Lease Corporation (27) and Middle East Airlines of Lebanon, (4). Other airlines ordering A321XLR directly or through lessors include, additionally to AA, Aer Lingus, Frontier, Iberia, JetSMART (Chile), Jetstar, Qantas, Wizz Air.

OMAT
published range maps from GC

Maps:




Links to sources
Link to Is The Airbus A321XLR Vaporware Or The New Long-Range Leader?, Michael Goldstein, Forbes, 19 Jun 2018 (early speculation)
JonNYC original hearing from multiple angles that an AA order for the A321LR is imminent, potentially at the Paris air show was 31 May 2019, quoted in this thread on airliners.net.
Link to Airbus launches longest range single-aisle airliner: the A321XLR, Airbus, 17 Jun 2019
Link to Airbus Launches The A321XLR, The Longest Range Narrow Body Plane Ever, by Ben (Lucky), OMAT, 17 Jun 2019
Link to American Airlines agrees to order 50 Airbus A321XLRs,Airbus, 19 Jun 2019
Link to American Airlines Orders 50 Airbus A321XLRs, Ben (Lucky, 19 Jun 2019 OMAT
Link to American Airlines to become the first US airline to order new Airbus plane Phil LeBeau, CNBC, 19 Jun 2019 (It was actually Frontier who ordered first)
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AA Orders 50 Airbus A321XLR at 2019 Paris Airshow

Old Jun 19, 2019, 1:11 pm
  #16  
 
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Originally Posted by JDiver
I think you are absolutely correct.

The Future Of Narrowbody Flat Bed Business Class? By Ben (Lucky), OMAT, 1 Aug 2017 - link

From the Thompson Aero Seating brochure:
Meh. I hadn't been following, but this looks like the herringbone style that the wide-bodies had abandoned in favor of reverse herringbone.
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Old Jun 19, 2019, 1:24 pm
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Originally Posted by teemuflyer
Happy for AA if they can make this work, and folks who prefer direct flights to the targeted destinations.

I think I will wait to hear about the experiences from a lot of flyers before getting on a 10+ hr flight on a narrow body. Even 6 hrs can be tough, as I like to get up and walk around, which will not be easy on this type of plane. Give me a large wide body any day, and I'll deal with the need to connect by cooling my heals in a nice lounge .

And I feel for the crew..
Agree. Im not onboard with joyful news of a long range narrow body option, especially in J. Even in a 1-1 configuration it could still feel crowded up front. Id be happy to take it as a transcon but anything over 6 hours is not going to happen as long as other wide body options are available.
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Old Jun 19, 2019, 1:31 pm
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Originally Posted by AA100k

Agree. Im not onboard with joyful news of a long range narrow body option, especially in J. Even in a 1-1 configuration it could still feel crowded up front. Id be happy to take it as a transcon but anything over 6 hours is not going to happen as long as other wide body options are available.
I think-- by and large-- you can all but count on there -not- being non-stop widebody options on the European routes this will be doing, that's kinda the point of it.
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Old Jun 19, 2019, 1:47 pm
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Originally Posted by JDiver
I think you are absolutely correct.

The Future Of Narrowbody Flat Bed Business Class? By Ben (Lucky), OMAT, 1 Aug 2017 - link

From the Thompson Aero Seating brochure:
These look like the awful DL 777 seats they're phasing out......really do not like this set up.
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Old Jun 19, 2019, 1:49 pm
  #20  
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In the future, if they build A321ULR aircraft. I was hoping Airbus will decide to build new A321ULR aircraft. It's called ultra long range. They can fly nonstop flight from MIA-Hawaii. The range is 5,200nm. They can have more capabilities, more fuel-efficient, and more range, as well.
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Old Jun 19, 2019, 1:54 pm
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Its now time for those brilliant minds that brought us project oasis to get hard at work and figure out how they can do a 27" seat pitch at the back of the bus with an ultra slimline economy seat.
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Old Jun 19, 2019, 2:02 pm
  #22  
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Originally Posted by JonNYC
I think-- by and large-- you can all but count on there -not- being non-stop widebody options on the European routes this will be doing, that's kinda the point of it.
Thats it. Im not saying these will be more or even equally spacious to wide bodies, and they wont offer the higher cabin pressure and moister cabin air of the 787 or A350 (but then, these would be flying on the same rotes as an A321XLR). But Id rather fly nonstop in one if these than fly in a 777 to Heathrow or Madrid and then fly in narrowbody business to Dubrovnik, Prague, Reykjavk, etc.
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Old Jun 19, 2019, 2:35 pm
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Originally Posted by AA100k

Agree. I’m not onboard with joyful news of a long range narrow body option, especially in J.
Funny; I'd say especially in Y. With six passengers per aisle and no option to go to the other aisle, the fraction of time you'll be trapped by a cart from going anywhere in Y will be awfully high. To me, that's the biggest drawback of a narrowbody.

At the very least, they better choose to configure the plane with lavs near the front of Y. And if they don't, I as a Y passenger will be using the lavs up front when carts block the aisle, so making the coach experience worse would also make the business experience worse for those who are bothered by passengers from the back walking through to the lav.

But I also generally agree that a narrowbody flying nonstop deep into Europe (or from smaller North American cities to major European hubs, namely LHR for AA+partners) is an enormous plus, building on the routes the 787 enables. As always, a lot of the comfort comes down to how the airline chooses to configure the plane rather than the plane itself.
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Old Jun 19, 2019, 2:59 pm
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Originally Posted by JDiver
That’s it. I’m not saying these will be more or even equally spacious to wide bodies, and they won’t offer the higher cabin pressure and moister cabin air of the 787 or A350 (but then, these would be flying on the same rotes as an A321XLR). But I’d rather fly nonstop in one if these than fly in a 777 to Heathrow or Madrid and then fly in narrowbody “business” to Dubrovnik, Prague, Reykjavk, etc.
That's what I love about choices and different preferences! I'll take the 777/787 to LHR/MAD/HEL, enjoy my lounge time, shower, and then take a small hop to whatever the final destination is. But yes, you'll beat me on arrival to "X".
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Old Jun 19, 2019, 3:12 pm
  #25  
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Originally Posted by ashill
Funny; I'd say especially in Y. With six passengers per aisle and no option to go to the other aisle, the fraction of time you'll be trapped by a cart from going anywhere in Y will be awfully high. To me, that's the biggest drawback of a narrowbody.
Perhaps AA didn't do it, but US and others flew the B757 from East Coast hubs to Europe in the past. I only flew on one once, on CO LIS-(GLA)-EWR (fuel stop due to volcano mess), and it was a far better experience than the B767 or A330 in coach. I don't recall any issues with the lavs. They actually did drink/snack service between LIS and GLA, then did the full drink/meal service after we got going from GLA, so carts were in the aisles quite a bit. From what I remember, most of the B757's had a forward lav in Y (just in front of door 2L), then 2 more in the back. If this new A321 variant is similar, I really don't see any problems.
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Old Jun 19, 2019, 4:02 pm
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Originally Posted by AANYC1981
These look like the awful DL 777 seats they're phasing out......really do not like this set up.
Amen to that. Those seats would be a terrible decision, and a definite step back. (Which means that is probably what current management will select.)
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Old Jun 19, 2019, 5:16 pm
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I hope these planes will allow CLT to have year-round flights to Dublin, Paris, and Madrid being it is an oneworld hub. I would also like to see CLT to AMS!
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Old Jun 19, 2019, 6:42 pm
  #28  
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I guess it all depends on where they deploy these planes. For Hawaii and South American thin routesi, we won't see any lie flat seating. For some longer European routes, I envision something like a front section of the aircraft being like the current business class lie flat seating on the domestic A321T routes. I can't see them making money with all-aisle access (ala A321T First seating). The 321XLR will never make money with < 150 seats. Add a few rows of PE and the rest for the bottom feeders and you satisfy most of the market who wants the point to point nonstop option.
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Old Jun 19, 2019, 6:52 pm
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Originally Posted by AANYC1981
These look like the awful DL 777 seats they're phasing out......really do not like this set up.
Vantage Solo should allow for the same number of seats as the Vantage setup (a la JetBlue's Mint), but with direct aisle access for every seat. I also think it would allow for an additional 2 seats in the same space over the "Raytheon" Diamond Seat

Not sure how that's not a win, particularly when you're unlikely to see anyone's face with high walls.
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Old Jun 19, 2019, 7:13 pm
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Originally Posted by thunderlounge
Amen to that. Those seats would be a terrible decision, and a definite step back. (Which means that is probably what current management will select.)
I am not familiar with those seats, but to me they look comparable to the offerings AA currently has. However, several people have concerns about them. Could someone please explain what they don't like about this seat?
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