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United Airlines limited itself to destinations in far Western Europe for its first deployment of the A321XLR, taking a more cautious view of the jet’s range than Airbus’s marketers.
“I feel like we’re very conservative with the range of the aircraft,” said Patrick Quayle, United senior vice president of global network planning. “Originally when Airbus marketed it, [the range] was a lot further than what it is right now, as constructed and as built.” United first ordered the XLR in 2019.
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The jets begin international service to Amsterdam and Dublin from Washington’s Dulles International Airport in December after launching domestic flying in September. For United’s schedule that begins in the spring, flights will expand from Dulles to Toulouse, France and from Newark to Ibiza, Luxembourg, and Marseille, France — the last a 3,402 nautical mile great circle route and its longest planned.
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