Qantas has delivered its first Airbus A321XLR, one of the 28 orders on Australian airlines.
Carrier received a Twinjet equipped with a Pratt & Whitney PW1100G engine at the Airframer's Hamburg Finkenwerder factory following the customer acceptance flight on June 24th.
Qantas will become the launch operator of XLR in the Asia-Pacific region.
Airbus points out that the long-range performance of aircraft (VH-OGA) is demonstrated during delivery flights.
The jet took off from Finkenward on a 5,200nm ferry flight to Bangkok on June 30, with another 4,100Nm sector heading for Sydney.
He is scheduled to arrive in Sydney on July 2nd, Qantas says.
The Career says that around 1,000 staff members, including pilots, cabin crews, engineers and ground staff, are trained to prepare for the implementation of the XLR.
“Its arrival marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter in Qantas and the key advancements in improving the experience we offer our customers,” says Qantas National Chief Marcus Svenson.
According to Airbus, Twinjet is comprised of 197 seats in a business class cabin, including 20. The aircraft will initially be deployed on domestic flights.
Qantas' low-cost subsidiary Jetstar is also set up to collect XLRs, with 12 types being ordered.
