XiamenAir has received its first Airbus A321neo on 1 January 2023

Report by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA / Image : XiamenAir                                              

                       Image : Airbus   

On 1 January 2023, XiamenAir receives its first Airbus aircraft, the Airbus A321neo, under flight MF8896 from Airbus.

MF8896 first departs from Hamburg for Xiamen via Tashkent on 31 December 2022 at 1.02 pm, stops over in Tashkent at 11.30 pm local time before leaving for Xiamen at 1.02 am on 1 January 2023 and touching down in Xiamen at 9.58 am.

Images of XiamenAir A321neo seats and inner cabin : XiamenAir

The largest member of the A320neo family, the Airbus A321neo has the most spacious cabin of any single-aisle aircraft and can comfortably seat 180 to 220 passengers, with a maximum of 244 passengers in a single layout. The advantage of A321neo is first reflected in its "big". The overall length of the aircraft is 44.51 m, and the cross-sectional width of the cabin is 3.7 m. Both indicators are in an advantageous position among wide-body passenger aircraft in the world. XiamenAir chose a 208-seat configuration that provides passengers with a more comfortable experience, including 8 Business Class seats and 200 Economy Class seats. Under this layout, passengers have more space for activities and the opportunity to choose different cabins according to their own needs.

"Cheaper air tickets" is also a big change that the A321neo may bring. XiamenAir's A321neo aircraft is equipped with two CFMLEAP-1A engines representing extremely high fuel efficiency. With the cooperation of sharklets and aerodynamic performance optimization, single-seat fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions can be reduced compared with the previous generation aircraft 20%. That means airlines have more leeway in pricing and passengers can expect lower discounted fares. In addition, the noise of the new engine is also greatly reduced, which is a major benefit to both the passenger experience and the community around the airport.

XiamenAir's A321neo is also expected to help passengers unlock more destinations. It has strong route adaptability, with a maximum range of more than 8,700 km (ultra-long-range A321XLR), which enables it to execute some routes that traditionally belong to wide-body aircraft at the cost of a single-aisle aircraft, such as domestic trunk line flights to Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu and other major cities as well as flights to major airports in Asia such as Narita, Incheon, Changi, Suvarnabhumi, KLIA and Doha. This means that more passengers will experience the "different" A321neo on more routes.