To ensure this true market leader keeps its competitive edge, Airbus continues to invest in improvements across the product line, including development of the A320neo (new engine option) Family, enhancements to the jetliner’s aerodynamics such as Sharklets wingtip devices, upgrades to the widest passenger cabin in its class, and extended service intervals for the airframe.
Airbus had booked over 4,300 firm orders for new engine option aircraft as of October 2015, comprising an important percentage of the more than 12,200 overall orders logged by Airbus for the entire A320 Family.
The A320neo “new engine option” is the latest of many product upgrades as Airbus continues to invest around 300 million euros a year in improvements for the A320 Family. The NEO incorporates many innovations, including latest generation engine choices – the PurePower PW1100G-JM from Pratt & Whitney and CFM International’s LEAP-1A –and large Sharklet wing-tip devices, which together deliver 15 percent in fuel savings upon service entry.
By 2020, the NEO will deliver a 20 per cent fuel burn improvement per seat and an additional flight distance of 500 nautical miles (950 kilometres), or the ability to carry two tonnes more payload at a given range. For the environment, the A320neo’s fuel savings translate into some 5,000 tonnes fewer CO2 emitted per aircraft annually. Additionally, the A320neo will provide a double-digit reduction in NOx emissions and reduced engine noise.
The A320neo Family versions will have over 95 per cent airframe commonality with the A320ceo (current engine option) versions, enabling it to fit seamlessly into existing A320 Family fleets – a key factor for Airbus customers and operators which have taken delivery of more than 6,500 CEO aircraft so far.
Airbus has enhanced its A320 Family with fuel-saving Sharklets, which are available as an option on new-build A319, A320 and A321 aircraft; standard on the full A320neo product line, and offered as a retrofit for in-service A320s and A319s from 2015. Sharklets also are equipped on the ACJ319, ACJ320 and ACJ321 corporate jet versions based on Airbus’ A320 Family members. These devices cut down on aerodynamic drag by helping reduce the spiral-shaped vortices that are formed at the wingtips of any aircraft during flight.
The Sharklets bring four per cent savings in overall fuel consumption on long route sectors to A320 aircraft, while also improving takeoff performance and increasing payload by as much as 450 kg. – allowing for additional range or more passengers to be carried. These devices also should allow for less thrust to be used during takeoff when runway performance is not “limiting,” thereby decreasing airport noise.
In addition to their performance and environmental benefits, the Sharklets’ aerodynamic improvements provide other advantages for operators – including better rate-of-climb, higher optimum altitude, reduced engine maintenance costs and higher residual aircraft value.
Deliveries of the A320ceo jetliners with Sharklets began in December 2012 with the first aircraft’s handover to AirAsia – the largest low-cost carrier in Asia and the biggest A320 Family airline customer – and Airbus has since delivered both A319s and A321s with Sharklets
With four different models offering market coverage from 100 to 240 seats, the A320 Family allows operators to match the right aircraft size to demand and cover the entire single-aisle market, from low-to-high-density domestic routes to longer-range thin routes.
The A320 Family offers all of the benefits from Airbus’ advances in innovation and technology, which result in increased revenue opportunities. These aircraft were the first commercial jetliners to incorporate fly-by-wire flight controls. In addition, their optimised fuselage improves passenger revenue with the widest cabin in the single-aisle marketplace, and increased cargo revenue due to the larger cargo holds and integrated on-board loading systems.
Advantages of the A320 Family’s spacious cabin – the widest single-aisle fuselage on the market – include Airbus’ 18-inch wide seat standard for unmatched passenger comfort, an extra-wide aisle for faster boarding and highly efficient in-flight service, more space for carry-on baggage, and choices of seating configurations in four-, five- and six-abreast layouts.
Since the A320’s service introduction in 1988, this highly capable jetliner product line has transported approximately 90 per cent of the world’s population in total numbers, carrying some six billion passengers.
The A320 Family’s numbers speak for themselves: An A320 takes off or lands somewhere in the world every two seconds of every day, more than 50 million operating cycles logged since entry-in-service, and a best-in-its-class operational reliability of over 99.7 per cent.
By totally redefining the level of comfort for passengers, and delivering unmatched efficiency plus the best in technology for operators, the A320 Family has won a majority market share in segments that range from mainline network carriers and low-cost airlines to charter operators and leasing companies. It also has become an aircraft of choice for VIP and government transportation with the Airbus Corporate Jetliner versions.
To regularly enhance the A320 Family’s capabilities and performance, Airbus invests more than 100 million euros annually in keeping the aircraft highly competitive and efficient.
In addition to the A320neo and Sharklets, Airbus has continuously improved payload and range since the A320 Family’s service entry, while various aerodynamic refinements have brought additional reductions in drag for better fuel efficiency and lower emissions.
Improvements in the two jet engine types currently available on the A320 Family – CFM International’s CFM56 and the International Aero Engines V2500 – have resulted in fuel consumption reductions, lower emissions, longer on-wing lifetimes and more cost-efficient maintenance.
Airbus has also taken steps to make the A320 Family even quieter, with aircraft innovations such as the higher bypass ratio new engine options for the NEO project; Sharklets, which allow for lower takeoff thrust when runway performance is not “limiting,” and aerodynamic refinements. The A320 Family is also equipped for optimised procedures to reduce noise levels during flight, including required navigation performance and continuous descent approaches.
An enhanced cabin configuration developed by Airbus for new production jetliners – as well as for retrofit on existing aircraft – provides additional shoulder-level room for passengers, 10 per cent greater stowage volume for overhead baggage, and a modern ambience using LED lighting, all while making best use of latest technologies, materials and design. As an added bonus, the new cabin also brings a reduction in weight.
Airbus has steadily increased its A320 Family production rate to meet market demand for its best-selling single-aisle product line – gradually moving toward the highest monthly production rate ever in civil aviation.
In October 2015, the company announced the decision to increase A320 Family jetliner production to 60 per month by mid-2019, following thorough studies of ramp-up readiness in Airbus’ facilities and throughout its global network of supply chain partners.
Enabling this further ramp-up in Airbus’ monthly single-aisle production – which will have increased from 42 in February 2014 to 60 in mid-2019 – is the extended capacity across the company’s A320 Family final assembly lines. An additional production line in Hamburg, Germany will be established, while in parallel Airbus will integrate cabin furnishing activities in Toulouse, France into the A320 Family final assembly line at this site, harmonising activities at the four A320 Family production sites worldwide.
In addition to Airbus’ European single-aisle final assembly facilities, the company also produces A320 Family jetliners in Tianjin, China and Mobile, Alabama in the U.S. Toulouse is home to the initial assembly line, building A320s; Hamburg has responsibility for the A318, A319, A320 and A321; Tianjin assembles A319s and A320s; while Mobile has the capability to produce A319, A320 and A321 aircraft.
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