The largest member of the Airbus' A320neo single aisle passenger aircraft family, the A321neo successfully completed its maiden flight,...
The largest member of the Airbus' A320neo single aisle passenger aircraft family, the A321neo successfully completed its maiden flight, powered by CFM International LEAP-1A engines on February 9th from Hamburg, Germany.
The flight lasted five hours and 29 minutes during which tests were performed on the engine speed variation (low/high), systems behaviour and to validate the aircraft’s flight envelope.
The A321neo will join the NEO (new engine option) flight test fleet and perform a partial flight test programme to validate the impact on handling qualities, performance and systems. The first A321neo will be delivered at the end of 2016.
The aircraft, registration D-AVXB, was flown by Experimental Test Pilots Martin Scheuermann and Bernardo Saez Benito Hernandez. Accompanying them in the cockpit was Test-Flight Engineer Gérard Leskerpit and monitoring the flight’s progress were Flight-Test Engineers Sandra Bour Schaeffer and Emiliano Requena Esteban.
The LEAP engine began flight tests on the A320neo variant in May 2015 and has logged more than 1,000 engine hours to date on more than 200 flights to support aircraft certification and first delivery in mid-2016. The engine received joint U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and European Aviation Safety Agency certification in November 2015.
The neo variants incorporates many innovations including latest generation engines, Sharklet wing tip devices and cabin improvements, which together will deliver up to 20 percent in fuel savings by 2020. The A320neo flight test campaign has accumulated some 1,900 flight hours in over 640 flights since the first flight on 25th September 2014.
The flight lasted five hours and 29 minutes during which tests were performed on the engine speed variation (low/high), systems behaviour and to validate the aircraft’s flight envelope.The A321neo will join the NEO (new engine option) flight test fleet and perform a partial flight test programme to validate the impact on handling qualities, performance and systems. The first A321neo will be delivered at the end of 2016.
The LEAP engine began flight tests on the A320neo variant in May 2015 and has logged more than 1,000 engine hours to date on more than 200 flights to support aircraft certification and first delivery in mid-2016. The engine received joint U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and European Aviation Safety Agency certification in November 2015.
The neo variants incorporates many innovations including latest generation engines, Sharklet wing tip devices and cabin improvements, which together will deliver up to 20 percent in fuel savings by 2020. The A320neo flight test campaign has accumulated some 1,900 flight hours in over 640 flights since the first flight on 25th September 2014.
