In May, Airbus released its Q1 2022 report, announcing that the A320 family will produce 75 aircraft per month in 2025.
As the best-selling iconic aircraft in the civil aviation market, Airbus plans to climb production of the A320 family to 65 aircraft per month next summer. This will also update the pre-pandemic production record for civilian models. Airbus CEO Forry said that Xingran has a complex geopolitical and economic environment, and Airbus' guidelines for 2022 have not changed. "After analyzing global householders and assessing the readiness of the industry ecosystem, the company is now working with suppliers and partners to achieve a monthly production of 75 A320 family aircraft by 2025" Airbus announced that it will increase the capacity of its existing plant and expand a new final assembly line in Mobile, USA to meet higher production demand, while investing in ensuring that all final assembly sites are capable of producing the A321. Previously, Airbus established A321 final assembly capacity on the Tianjin final assembly line as part of this plan.
One reason for underpinning such high production is that the 200-seat long-range A321 has already seized the original midsize market. In the official materials released by Airbus, the A321 is also classified as a "medium-sized aircraft", and a few days ago, the first A321xLR has been painted. Airbus said it would strive to achieve its first flight by the end of the second quarter of this year. On the other hand, due to no changes, the A321XLR service has been extended from the end of 2023 to 2024. Prior to the A321XLR, Airbus had added optional additional fuel tanks to some A321 cargo holds to meet the need for longer direct routes. In the A321XLR, Airbus will load more fuel by installing a large fuel tank integrated into the middle of the fuselage, and Boeing questioned the safety of this design, saying that this design of air capacity may pose a potential fire risk. Recently, the relevant person in charge of EASA also said that "airworthiness regulations related to the installation of RCT fuel tanks are still being formulated." In response to more stringent airworthiness requirements, Airbus will likely require design changes to certain belly sections. Will the resulting design changes shorten the range of the XLR? An Airbus spokesman said the flight was 'not expected to be significantly affected'.