From the first A320 in 1987 to a family full of aircraft, Airbus has built an extensive collection of narrow-body aircraft, all of which can be difficult to tell apart. Having explored some basic Airbus and Boeing differences, we take a look at some key features of Airbus’ narrow-body fleet that make each aircraft type stand out from the crowd.
The Airbus A220
The Airbus A220 is the half-sibling of the fleet, originally manufactured by Bombardier, and Airbus bought a 50% stake in the program in July 2018. This was to save Bombardier from strict US regulations on foreign-made aircraft, made possible by using Airbus’ final assembly plant in Alabama. This is the reason why the A220 is sometimes still referred to as the Bombardier CSeries, and why its ICAO designations begin with ‘BCS’.
Because of this, the Airbus A220 has some unique features that won’t be found in the rest of the Airbus fleet. For example, the A220 has four cockpit windows instead of the usual Airbus six. The A220 is also the only Airbus narrow-body to have winglets protruding from the wings at a 45-degree angle. Finally, the Airbus A220’s tail cone looks more square compared to the rest, which look circular in shape.
The Airbus A220 comes in two variants: The A220-100 and A220-300. Unfortunately, the only difference between the two is the size. This is where knowing which airlines operate each variant can come in handy. The larger variant is the A220-300, whilst the A220-100 is smaller, seating 25 fewer people.
The Airbus A318 'Babybus'
Being Airbus’ smallest model with a maximum seating capacity of 132, the Airbus A318 is incredibly rare. In fact, only one airline still commercially operates the A318, Air France, which plans to retire the aircraft type this year. The distinctive feature of this aircraft is its tall vertical stabilizer, looking strangely disproportionate to the rest of the aircraft. Despite its size, the A318 has a vertical stabilizer around a meter taller than the rest of the A320 family.
The Airbus A319 and A320
Whilst size is the key factor between A320 family variants, this can be hard to notice unless looking at it relative to another aircraft. The A319 is all about the over-wing emergency exits, having one on each side rather than the A320’s two. This is essential to know as the A319 and A320 look almost identical aside from their length. However, there’s one exception to this, which is that high-density seating configuration A319s, like those operated by easyJet feature an extra over-wing emergency exit to accommodate a boosted seating capacity.
Unlike the A318, both the A319 and A320 can sometimes feature sharklets – the Airbus name for winglets. These exist on some newer A320 family aircraft, as opposed to the A318 which features triangular shaped wing fences on every aircraft.
The Airbus A321
The Airbus A321 is the longer variant of the A320 series, directly competing with Boeing’s 757. Its most distinguishable feature is its doors, containing four on either side of the aircraft. It has two before and after the wing, as well as the usual front and back pair of doors, allowing for additional passenger capacity.
Spotting the Neo
In 2010, Airbus announced that it would be upgrading its A319, A320 and A321 programs. The new product, titled the ‘Neo’, stands for New engine option and, as the name suggests, the aircraft have updated engines for efficiency purposes. Because of this, the engines are the easiest way to identify an A320neo family aircraft, being much larger in diameter.
All A320neo family aircraft have sharklets, as opposed to the A320ceo where they only exist on some examples. Many, but not all, A320neos feature Airbus’ sleek masked cockpits. These are painted black around the cockpit windows for temperature control purposes. They can occasionally feature on the A320ceo as well, but it’s a lot less common.
On some Airbus A321neos, increased seating capacity is achieved through eliminating the second door and replacing it with one or two over-wing emergency exits instead. It allows the aircraft to fly an extra 20 passengers. This means that to tell these apart from the A320, you have to look for the middle door, situated further behind the wing.
There are other A321 models, the A321LR and brand-new A321XLR, but these only differ by range. This means that they look almost exactly like the shorter-ranged A321neo.
Spotting Airbus narrow-body variants can be difficult, but you can always verify your work with Flightradar24. Have you got any tips and tricks for identifying Airbus narrow-bodies? Let us know in the comments below.
9 Responses
The belly fairing on the A321XLR extends further back along the fuselage than on other A321 models. On the XLR it finishes underneath the rearmost emergency door. On the LR and standard A321neo, the fairing finishes before it reaches the door.
“Bei einigen Airbus A321neo wird die Sitzplatzkapazität erhöht, indem die zweite Tür entfernt und durch einen oder zwei Notausgänge über den Flügeln ersetzt wird”
Es sind tatsächlich alle. Ich weiß nicht, wann das letzte Mal eine Nicht-ACF rausgegangen ist.
Is it true the 321cannot reach 37k or higher with full pax?
Thanks, I will use this guide next time I go to Newark
The A321neo can carry up to 246 people and is generally equipped with 190-210 seats. What kind of seats are generally equipped with the A321LR and A321XLR?
I really love the plane Even if There not beautiful in the inside
I really love the plane
I love all these planes
These planes are nice