With the Airbus A321XLR (the extra long-range version of the A321neo) coming along very shortly, Airbus showed off a cabin demonstrator of the possibilities of the type at Aircraft Interiors Expo.
As the A321XLR clears a major certification hurdle, what can we look forward to seeing aboard?
The A321XLR demostrator has been set up in a 2 and half-class configuration for long-haul missions. Inside, you’re greeted with hero light in the ceiling, with, the airspace style pattern that has been so familiar.
Those of you will note, that the Airspace XL bins make an appearance here – something the long haul passenger will appreciate as they can stow their larger carryon item in the overhead bin, rather than consign it to under the belly of the aircraft.
At the front of this demonstrator is the Thomson Vantage Solo, in a 1-1 layout, to give a business class experience.
This is offered in two variants – a normal business seat, and a business-plus configuration, as a full suite, making use of the dead space that could be left behind at the front of a cabin.
The normal business class seat – with the seat swinging outwards to the cabin.
Row Two
Business Class Suite+ – the current way to extend the use of dead bulkhead space at the front of an aircraft.
In case these look familiar – they should be as the Thomson Vantage Solo is flying with JetBlue as their Mint suites and Mint Studio products.
Mint suits are the base-line seat, with the Mint Studio being the front-row “Super Suite” product, which allows for a second person to join you to dine and chatter, as well as a larger bed
Moving back down the cabin, Geven Elemento seats in a 3-3- formation were shown – very much a long-haul style capable seat. these meet the long-range needs, whilst obtaining the seat weight savings that we would expect for this mission profile.
This also keeps the high-capacity AirspaceXL overhead bins, allowing for those bags to be stored as needed.
What are airlines thinking of?
With Ibera being the first A321XLR operator, we know a few things – for example, their economy product will feature the Recaro R3 (CL3810) long haul seat (as opposed to the demonstrated Geven product).
As for the business product, there are a number of options out there that can be selected – we’re awaiting to find out what they choose, with Safran having options too, with its VUE seat.
Or the Collins Aerospace Aurora.
American Airlines showed a three-class demonstration video (with no specifications other than the classes to be installed), that they initially plan to operate on their New York – Los Angeles/New York San Francisco transcontinental premium routes, before deploying them on the long haul missions
Premium Economy Class
Economy Class
There’s a lot of choice, depending on the mission
At the end of the day, how an airline will configure its aircraft comes down to one thing: its planned mission.
We’ve seen some interesting configurations recently (with ITA Airways having premium A321neos, Jet and Aer Lingus with their two-class A321LRs with more traditional seating, to Air Transat who have selected recliners for their Club Class, with the usual 3-3 down the back.
No doubt, there will be many to come. Remember the customer base of the A321XLR is wide, from American Airlines, Indigo Partners (Wizz Air and Frontier), IndiGo Qantas, United Airlines, VietJet – the list goes on and on.
And you’ll notice in this list there’s more than a mix of legacy and low-cost carriers – who will have different requirements, cabin designs – or if they’re going to cram in as many rows for the extra payload, with the possibilities an aircraft like this can offer.
A chance to refine the single-aisle long-haul experience
Long-time readers of Economy Class and Beyond will know I’ve done my fair share of long-haul (or at least transatlantic flights – mainly with US Airways, United Airlines and American Airlines).
Whilst I love the Boeing 757 (the pocket rocket is still one of my favourite aircraft, especially if the Captain is in the mood to go for a powerful takeoff), Boeing’s cabin width comes into play, with tight seats, or ageing products.
Granted, most of the aircraft in those reviews have met their fates, but the wider cabin of the A320 family gives airlines the ability to be creative with the space they have.
Whilst there may only be a 16cm difference in cabin width (A321neo width of 3.70m vs Boeing 757 width of 3.54m), it is enough for 18″ width seats in economy class, and wider products in Business Class. Or add row upon row of comfortable enough economy class seats for a low-cost carrier watching every penny.
A “Clean Sheet” cabin is something of a dream for an airline – they can design it for the mission, rather than just go for a metric that might exist. They can use the knowledge and data they’ve accumulated to work out what will work well for their customers, as well as their long-term bank balance.
I’m rather excited to see what the A321XLR will bring… and if someone chooses something a little different from the norm.
Disclosures: Economy Class and Beyond was a guest of Airbus, Collins Aerospace, Recaro Aircraft Seating and Safran at Aircraft Interiors Expo as a Media Guest. We thank them for access to the stands and products to show off in this article.
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