By Bjorn Fehrm

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Introduction

March 19, 2020, © Leeham News: Over the last weeks, we compared the Airbus A330-900 to the A350-900 when flying the long routes over the Pacific Ocean. Now we pose the question: To what extent is an A321XLR a possible alternative or complement to these long-rangers for Oceanic routes?

The A31XLR has the range to be a credible trans-Atlantic aircraft since its 700nm range hike over the A321LR. But can it be used over the Pacific Ocean as well? We check it out.

Summary:

• Direct routing US West Coast to East Asia is too long for the A321XLR.
• But there are interesting US to Asia routings where the A321XLR is the enabler for the route structure.