Iberia's first A321XLR has finally taken off: a new era for long-haul flights begins
Clear skies and a temperature of 9 degrees: it is just past 8:15 a.m. when Flight IB1499 is [...]
Iberia
Oneworld
MAD
Clear sky and a temperature of 9 degrees: It is just past 8:15 a.m. when the flight IB1499 took off from theMadrid Airport to the port of Paris-Charles de Gaulle: after several postponements, Today - finally - the first Airbus A321XLR (makes EC-OIL) made its debut. Arrival at CDG is scheduled at 10:00 a.m., while departure for the Spanish capital is scheduled for 11:45 a.m.
In this article:
As we have written extensively in recent weeks, Iberia will deploy its new gem on the route MAD-CDG until November 13, 2024; the next day, however, it will make its long-haul debut on the route Madrid-Boston while next January 15, 2025, finally, it will be the turn of the Madrid-Washington (IAD). On November 7, 8 and 11, Iberia's XLR will also be used on the Madrid - Stockholm Arlanda route.
How was Iberia's XLR configured? The set-up includes only two classes, business and economy, for a total of 182 passengers. At the front of the plane are the 14 business class seats, which have a 1-1 layout: all passengers, therefore, have direct access to the aisle. Immediately behind, however, are the 168 'tourist' class seats; in this case the layout is 3-3. According to leaked information, all 182 passengers will have not only an entertainment system equipped with Bluetooth, but also wi-fi (which will be free for exchanging messages).
The XLR - unveiled by Airbus in June 2019 during the Paris Air Show - is part of the A320 family; however, it has important differences in terms of range with the A321 in the -neo and -LR versions. If the A321LR stops, in fact, at a range of 'only' 7400km, the XLR, on the other hand, can boast a maximum range of as much as 8700km: all this is made possible by the presence of a large tank located in the lower part of the fuselage, exactly behind the landing gears located at wing level.
2019 to present, there are approximately twenty airlines who have ordered the twin-engine narrow-body aircraft capable of flying the farthest and longest of all (nonstop, ça va sans dire): the first to receive it was Iberia, then it will be the turn of Air Lingus, which is due six specimens.
