Airbus A321XLR embarks on first international test flights

The ‘Functional and Reliability Testing’ (FnR) campaign, part of the A321XLR programme, is begun. This certification operation by Airbus, also known as “Route Proving,” is a factor in the EASA Type Certification that will be granted to the new model in 2024.

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The primary goal of the FnR is to show that the A321XLR’s systems are mature before it enters service, with a target of about 100 hours of flight time spread over 10 days without a system power-down. A small number of sectors, totaling about 15 flights, are meant to be representative of the routes that airlines may choose to operate after the aircraft is put into service. These are intended to represent a variety of operator profiles, climatic factors, flight lengths, and turnaround periods at airports.

For the first time since the A321XLR’s maiden flight in June 2022, real airline cabin and flight crews will be gaining practical experience alongside Airbus test pilots and flight engineers, as well as a representative group of about 30 passengers made up of volunteer Airbus and airline staff.

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As the A321XLR spreads its wings for the first flight, travelling across oceans and stopping at foreign airports, everyone on board as well as several supporting personnel on the ground in Toulouse and at the destination airports will work towards a single goal to provide helpful feedback. ‘MSN 11080’, one of three specialised flight test prototypes, is the aircraft that is carrying out these missions and is the only one with a fully furnished cabin interior.

After the flights themselves are completed, the FnR campaign swings into its next phase which addresses the aspects of certification reporting as well as Airbus’ own internal development activity.