Airbus’ new plane is the answer to an aging, inefficient Boeing jet that airlines are scrambling to replace
Airbus built special narrowbody long-haul planes to fill a market gap left vacant by Boeing, and they are proving a popular choice for airlines.
Airbus is hyper-focused on a segment of the aircraft market that Boeing has all but abandoned, giving it yet another advantage over the embattled planemaker.
The A321XLR, expected to launch in November, touts a 5,400-mile range, roughly 11 hours of nonstop flying. That’s about 800 miles further than its predecessor and at least 880 miles further than its closest competitor: the aging, out-of-production Boeing 757.
Carriers like United Airlines and Icelandair are lining up for the new jet, putting in more than 550 orders so far. The first one was delivered to Spanish flag carrier Iberia on October 30.
Many airlines are eyeing the plane as a replacement for their existing 757s. For decades, airlines favored the narrowbody Boeing jet for its flexible capacity and range, powerful engines, and solid economics. Over its two decades of production between 1983 and 2004, Boeing produced about 1,050 of the jets, including a freighter version.
The XLR’s improved efficiency could enable airlines to more profitably connect niche city pairs with lower demand.
The 757 was powerful and versatile in its heyday
While the 757 was built for short and medium-haul flying, it quickly became popular across the Atlantic — unlocking the savings of single-aisle long-haul flying, a segment that was largely dominated by widebody planes like the Boeing 767 at the time.
Sales of the 757 slowed in the early 2000s. Demand for long-haul narrowbodies dwindled as airlines looked for more efficient jetliners. Continental Airlines, now United Airlines, switched its 757-300 order to the newer 737-800 in 2003, for example.
Boeing stopped producing the plane in 2004 but didn’t replace the program with anything comparable. Instead, it remained steadfast in its 737 and 787 families, not seeing a need for another 757-type plane.
Bjorn Fehrm, an aviation analyst at Leeham News, told The Seattle Times in July that not replacing the 757 was “a huge mistake” and said it would have been a “smack-on better competitor to the XLR.”
That gave Airbus the space to create a similar jet that could travel further distances for cheaper. With Boeing marred by its own production slowdowns on both its 737 and 787 planes, Airbus is poised to gain further market share.
The A321XLR is expected to be a gamechanger
Airbus’ new “extra long haul” narrowbody is poised to be a game changer. Thanks to its extra fuel tank, it can unlock routes that are unreachable with shorter-haul jets like the Boeing 737 Max.
Boeing’s closest competing option is its yet-to-be-certified 737 Max 10, which is close in size but can’t fly as far. The planemaker has a potential “new midsize airplane” that could compete with the A321XLR, though that is still long away from taking flight.
In August, United told B-17 that its A321XLR fleet would replace almost all of its existing 757 routes and allow it to travel to new places, like France and North Africa.
Icelandair will also replace its 757 fleet with the A321XLR, abandoning the largely all-Boeing fleet it has operated for decades. Considering the massive costs and resources needed to switch manufacturers, it’s likely the choice wasn’t a newfound loyalty to Airbus but because there was no other choice.
Among the largest 757 operators, Delta Air Lines remains the holdout. The company announced in October a retrofit of its entire fleet — including its 110 757s — suggesting the carrier doesn’t plan to soon part with its decades-old jets.
The news came shortly after deliveries for Delta’s order for 737 Max 10 planes were pushed to 2026. The carrier has not announced an order for the A321XLR, but flies many A321neos with more orders on the way.
