The aircraft is poised to be a long-haul workhorse, connecting lower-demand markets that would otherwise be inefficient with a widebody. Thanks to its additional fuel tank, the A321XLR can fly up to 5,400 miles (11 hours) non-stop. This compares with the 4,600 mile range of its predecessor, the Airbus A321LR.
United bought 50 of the A321XLRs to replace its aging Boeing 757s. The airline says it has 61 Boeing 757s with an average age of about 24 years.
United’s senior vice president of global network planning and alliances, Patrick Quayle, told Business Insider on Wednesday that its A321XLR will take over virtually all existing 757 routes and open new ones. Its first A321XLR is expected to be delivered in December 2025
“We use the 757 to fly to smaller markets like Tenerife, Spain and Reykjavik,” he said, adding a Boeing 767 or Boeing 787 would not make sense on those routes with less demand. “The 757 is getting a bit uneconomical, but we want to keep flying to those cities, and the A321XLR has a longer range and has much better fuel burn and maintenance costs.”
A company spokesperson told BI that the A321XLR’s network will be primarily international. She said the only domestic route United consistently flies the 757 is Denver to Lihue, Hawaii, and while that is subject to change, the company doesn’t expect to replace it with the XLR. She added that the Newark, New Jersey, to Lima service is still being decided.
Airbus showed off its new A321XLR at the Farnborough Air Show in July. Rasid Necati Aslim/Anadolu via Getty Images
This means customers can expect the A321XLR to fly on existing 757 routes to destinations such as Faro and Porto in Portugal, Malaga, Spain, Edinburgh, Scotland and Shannon, Ireland.
Quayle said United also plans to fly to places previously unreachable by narrowbody aircraft, such as France, northern Italy, Scandinavia, West Africa and North Africa.
“You really can’t get further than Spain with a 757,” Quayle said. “The A321XLR can fly much further and will open up new stations that are either not served by an airline today or not served by United Airlines.”
The A321XLR ushers in a new era in long-haul travel
The A321XLR has received certification from European safety authorities but is still awaiting certification from the Federal Aviation Administration, although Airbus said in July that it was “getting closer to the finish line”.
Spanish carrier Iberia is the first customer and is expected to receive the first A321XLR in November. This inaugural flight is scheduled to fly from Madrid to Boston.
The new aircraft uses 30% less fuel than previous-generation narrowbodies and can seat up to 220 passengers in two classes, making it a perfect aircraft for non-United airlines looking to serve more niche long-haul markets.
c MarchAmerican Airlines’ managing director of global network planning, Jason Reisinger, said XLR is favorable because it can serve “routes that can’t support the 787, but where we still have a good built-in product.”
He suggested routes such as Raleigh, North Carolina, direct to London — denying a layover at the carrier’s Charlotte or New York hubs en route. American has 50 XLRs on order.
American (pictured) and United plan to install new lie-flat business class cabins on their XLRs. American Airlines
Orders from budget carriers IndiGo and Frontier Airlines are examples of the versatile aircraft’s ability to fit into both low-cost and mainstream operations.
Former IndiGo CCO Willie Bulte said in 2021 that XLR could fill the gaps in flights between Indian cities and destinations in Europe and Asia, citing options such as Beijing, Seoul and Amsterdam.
Frontier CEO Barry Biffle suggested XLR could allow the ultra-low-fare giant to ditch its main domestic presence to serve more cities in South America and launch new routes to Hawaii and Europe.