Aviation News - June 2016

W

hen Lufthansa  ight ‘LH100’

took off from Frankfurt Airport

on January 25, it was another

important step for Airbus’

narrowbody portfolio.

The  rst passenger-carrying  ight by an

A320neo was an extremely low-key event,

little different from any other departure from

Frankfurt. Yet with 4,510  rm orders at the start

of April for the A320neo Family of re-engined

airliners, compared to 3,090 for the rival Boeing

737 MAX, plus the advantage of being the  rst

in service, Airbus should be in good cheer.

That celebrations have been at such a low

key highlights that not all is going to plan, with

several signi cant obstacles to be overcome.

Airbus launched the A320neo Family in

December 2010, offering ‘new engine option’

(neo) variants of the A319, A320 and A321.

Disappointing sales of the smallest member

of the family, the A318, eliminated it from the

re-engining programme.

Launch of the neo family was built on

investments made by engine manufacturers in

a new generation of fuel-efficient powerplants

promising to offer up to 15% reductions in fuel

burn and lower nitrous oxide emissions, as well

as decreasing noise levels by 10 to 15 decibels.

CFM International’s Leading Edge Aviation

Propulsion-X (LEAP-X) programme and Pratt &

Whitney’s PurePower geared turbofan formed

the basis of the new engines for the A320neo

Family. Airbus decided to offer both to continue

to give its customers a choice, as it had on the

A320ceo (‘current engine option’, as the variant

had been redesignated when the A320neo

was launched).

Engine selection is important for some

customers, notably lessors, as it enables them

to offer their clients’ airliners powerplants from

the same manufacturer as their existing  eet,

simplifying maintenance issues.

Airbus aimed to retain as much commonality

with the preceding A320ceo as possible. Only

5% of the parts would be changed, lessening

disruption to the manufacturer’s supply chain

and changes to  nal assembly lines while still

offering the airlines signi cant operating cost

savings.

NEW ENGINES

The new powerplants have a larger diameter

fan and are heavier than the International Aero

Engines V2500-A5 and CFM International

CFM56-5 of the A320ceo.

This necessitated several airframe changes

to the new airliner family: reinforced outer

wings and Sharklet winglet devices installed

as standard, new pylons for the powerplants

and reinforced landing gear to cope with the

56 Aviation News incorporating Classic Aircraft June 2016

AIRBUS A320neo

FAMILY

THE NEW GENERATION

Dave Willis examines the A320neo Family and why it

has secured such a huge number of orders.

56-59_a320DC.mf.indd 56 06/05/2016 14:42