Airbus-321: brief history and overview

Due to the relatively low cost of maintenance, maintenance and repair, the Airbus-321, the photo of which is presented below, is very popular among the world's leading aviation companies. In addition, due to the long fuselage, the aircraft is able to carry a much larger number of passengers on its board, in comparison with the previous modification. More details about it will be discussed later.

Short story

Work on the project of a new liner was launched in 1989. The main task, which was put before the designers at the development stage, was to ensure proper competition for the US aircraft Boeing-757. At the heart of the novelty was the design of the 320th model. Together with this, the developers have extended the fuselage Airbus-321 by seven meters. The cabin of the aircraft, as a result, became significantly more spacious. In addition, the engineers of the company-manufacturer equipped the model with more powerful power units, which allowed to increase the flight range. Changes also touched the wing, which began to withstand much greater loads than its predecessor.

The debut version of the airliner received the designation "100" in the title. The test flight was completed on March 11, 1993. Two months later, a modification was fitted into the air, equipped with more powerful engines. A year and a half later the plane was certified. In early 1995, the aircraft was delivered to the first customers, which became such air carriers as Alitalia (Italy) and Lufthansa (Germany). After that, work began on a new modification - Airbus-321-200. Novelty received additional fuel tanks, which allowed to increase the maximum flight range from 4500 to 5550 kilometers. Its first flight was carried out in 1996.

general description

By itself, this aircraft is a passenger medium-haul airliner, whose production does not stop even today. The assembly of the model, unlike other Airbus aircraft, is made in the German city of Hamburg, and not in French Toulouse. As of today, more than 700 aircraft have been assembled. At the same time, in the near future various world airlines are expecting deliveries of another one thousand units.

Typical Airbus-321 is designed to carry up to 220 people in one or two classes. If the required flight range is up to 5600 kilometers, the number of passengers is reduced to 170. The aircraft is equipped with six passenger doors and eight emergency exits that are on both sides of its fuselage.

Currently, the model is used by many companies of the world: for both budgetary and charter flights. This is not surprising, because the airliner is the most economical in terms of service throughout its family. The cost of the cheapest version of it starts at $ 110.1 million.

Salon

In the standard configuration of the Airbus-321, the cabin layout of the airliner provides for 185 passenger seats. At the same time, 16 of them belong to the business class. This kind of configuration for charter flights can be changed at the request of the customer. In particular, the ship is easily equipped for transportation of 220 people, however in this case all passengers will fly economy class. There is no doubt that the best places here are located in the first class. As for the layout of the cabin, it differs from different airlines.

Main characteristics

The total length of the aircraft is 44.51 meters, while its wingspan is 34.1 meters. The crew consists of two people - a pilot and his assistant. The cruising speed of the Airbus-321 is 840 km / h. With regard to fuel consumption, the vessel requires an average of 2,900 liters of kerosene per flight hour. The airliner is equipped with a digital control system, as well as EFIS avionics (the same ones are used in the 320th modification). A similar predecessor is also the level of generated noise and emission of harmful substances into the atmosphere . The maximum altitude of the flight is 11800 meters, and the range is 5950 kilometers.

The biggest accident

The largest air crash occurred with the Airbus-321 in Pakistan on July 28, 2010. Then the ship with serial number 1218, issued in 2010, made an internal flight between the cities of Karachi and Islamabad. The plane crashed during the approach at 9:45 local time. The main cause of the tragedy, which then claimed the lives of all 152 people on board, after the investigation, were complex meteorological conditions. It should be noted that at that time the ship managed to fly more than 34 thousand hours, making more than 13 thousand flights.

The latest modification

In addition to the two major modifications, which were discussed earlier, there is another version of the model Airbus-321. Feedback from representatives of many of its operating companies and experts testified to the presence on the market of great demand for even more economical machines. In connection with this, a modernized version of the model was developed, in the name of which appeared the marking "NEO". Its customers have the opportunity to choose between two new power plants.

Each of them has a lower fuel consumption, compared with the typical versions, and therefore the flight range of the liner has increased by almost a thousand kilometers. In addition, the wings of the novelty are made in the form of a shark fin, which contributes to the best aerodynamic performance. The passenger capacity of the aircraft increased to 235 people (for economy class only). It is expected that the operation of the novelty will begin in 2016. As of today, Airbus has already received orders for more than 500 such aircraft.