1st A321XLR comes out of the paintshop

The first built A321XLR has rolled-out of the paintshop at Hamburg-Finkenwerder. The aircraft, F-WXLR (11000) will now be prepared to conduct its first flight in the coming months.

Not all things are, however, peachy for Airbus' newest variant of the A321neo as the manufacturer has announced the program is going to be delayed. Originally, the A321XLR was set to enter commercial service in late 2023 but Airbus has now said it's looking to become early 2024.

The delay is the result of concerns by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) on how fire-proof the new additional rear-fuselage fuel tank is going to be. In order to be more safe, Airbus might need to make structural changes to the aft-fuselage, which could lead to an increase in weight and might also impact the performance of the A321XLR.

With the new additional fuel tank, the A321XLR is able to fly to up to 4,700 nm, which is almost 18% more than the A321LR. The extra range will enable airlines to operate the type non-stop on routes like Miami (FL) to London or Tokyo to Sydney.

Although Airbus doesn't provide the exact breakdown of A321neos sold, based on previous press-releases from orders, more than 300 A321XLRs have been sold so far.

Photo by Airbus.