Summary

  • The Airbus A320 was built to fill a gap in the market for a European short-haul aircraft, as existing options were limited to American-made aircraft like the Boeing 737.
  • Airbus faced challenges and delays in developing the A320 due to conflicts between suppliers and disagreements over the design of the aircraft.
  • The A320's fly-by-wire technology revolutionized air travel and allowed for the development of other aircraft models, making it the most successful aircraft family with over 11,000 deliveries and widespread use by airlines worldwide.

The Airbus A320 is the most ubiquitous aircraft flying in the sky. It has won airlines' hearts, enabled cheap short-haul travel, and has become the main rival of the Boeing 737.

The single-aisle aircraft has proven its capabilities worldwide, flying to various destinations, including remote landing sites, hot, arid environments, and icy Antarctic strips. It pioneered fly-by-wire technology and has been reliable since entering service with Air France in March 1988. But why did Airbus build it? And how has it become so popular?

Why did Airbus build the A320?

In the early 80s, there were only a few single-aisle, twinjet aircraft that suited domestic inter-Europe travel. The BAC One-Eleven, while highly praised, was ready for replacement. The market's options were limited to the American-made Boeing 737-200 or DC-9.

There was no European short-haul aircraft for airlines to purchase. Governments saw a hole in the market that was being swallowed up by foreign competitors. Airbus had recently completed the Airbus A300 and had been successful with the A310. While they were a good pick, governments at the time decided not to hand over the single-aisle project to Airbus just yet and let other manufacturers have a run at the marketplace.

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Failed attempts to create an aircraft

The first group of aircraft builders consisted of MAC, Saab, Casa, and MBB. They initially created a rear-engine 180-200 seater aircraft called the Europlane. However, as they worked on it, they realized its mission profile was almost identical to the current Airbus A310. They dropped that design and started again from scratch.

At the same time, another team was hard at work coming up with their version for the single-aisle competition. This team consisted of Fokker, Dornier, and Hawker-Siddeley. They created a 150-seater short-range aircraft that did not carry enough passengers.

In 1997, there was a third team of France's Dassault creating a longer-range version of the Mercure, eventually partnering with McDonnell Douglas on a new medium-range transport plane. The lack of sales of the Mercure ended this aircraft concept.

The first A320 concept

The lack of developments in the competitive European market frustrated governments, so they pushed for a new consortium of Airbus suppliers (but not Airbus itself). They created the Joint European Transport program (JET) and looked to build a new single-aisle aircraft that could carry 163 passengers. JET developed three concepts, ranging from 130 to 188 seats, each with two engines. It would have a speed of Mach 0.84, faster than the Boeing 737 at the time.

The suppliers of Airbus realized that they would have to all work together to build this aircraft and create a complex framework to do so, which was the whole point of Airbus in the first place. As such, the project was finally handed over to Airbus to take charge and turn the concepts into an actual plan. Airbus created three designs called SA1, SA2, and SA3. Little did Airbus know they had just outlined the A319, A320, and A321.

Bringing the A320 concept to market

Airbus decided that the first concept it would build would be the SA2/A320. They brought Delta Air Lines onboard as a consulting airline, which was looking for a two-class, 150-seater jet aircraft. Airbus would use this demand as a baseline for its new aircraft, although Delta would never actually order the plane in the end, as its A319 and A320 fleet comes from the merger with Northwest. It would, however, order the Airbus A321 and A220 many years later.

Delta Air Lines A321neo Lifting Off from SEA
Photo: Joe Kunzler | Simple Flying

However, going with the Delta idea annoyed local European airlines like Lufthansa and its patron (the German Government), who wanted a new quad long-range aircraft like the Boeing 707. Airbus had only built twinjet airliners at the time and lacked a competitor to the Boeing 707 or 747.

Airbus believed that the future lay with new technologies (such as fly-by-wire) and wanted to test these products on a smaller aircraft first. If anything went wrong, the plane would be close to an airport and not over the sea. Plus, the pressure from other governments to build a competitor to the Boeing 737 was rising fast. In the end, Lufthansa relented.

Unofficially, several airlines intended to purchase during the 1981 Paris Air Show despite Airbus not making the aircraft available for order. Air France was the first with a letter of intent for 25 aircraft, with British Caledonian, Cyprus Airways, and others following.

Frustratingly, while Airbus finalized the blueprints, orders were pending, and the plane was ready to be officially launched—conflicts between the suppliers over who would build what caused the aircraft to be delayed by three years. In 1986, the plane got a kickstart when Northwest Airlines ordered 100 A320s. That is when they discovered one unexpected benefit of its choice to use fly-by-wire.

Why Fly-By-Wire changed the game for Airbus

One of the unsung advantages of a fly-by-wire system, using electronics instead of mechanical components to control the aircraft, is that it can be replicated in other aircraft while keeping the same flying characteristics.

This means that an Airbus pilot on an A320 could potentially fly other Airbus aircraft without having to qualify for a new type rating. Realizing this, Airbus returned to finish its plans for the A319 and A321, both a shrink and a stretch of the existing A320 aircraft. With fly-by-wire controls, Airbus could tweak the flying characteristics to match the A320 and make them handle virtually the same.

Further developments

From here, the rest is history. Airbus would go on to develop several variants of the original A320 depending on the needs of a particular airline. They would make the A319 and A318 baby bus and stretch to an A321, later coming with its own long-range variants.

Airbus would update the famous A320 concept with the new engine option (neo), bringing cosmetic improvements, passenger comforts, and enhanced fuel efficiency. Finally, Airbus would release the A321LR and XLR, which would replace cargo space for fuel tanks and push the range of the humble A320 to astronomical proportions.

Airbus A321XLR Flying During The Paris Air Show
Photo: Airbus

By extending the range of the A320 family, Airbus opened doors to a whole new world of single-aisle air travel, allowing customers to deploy the type on a number of long-haul routes. The A321LR can fly up to 4,000 NM (4,600 mi), while the A321XLR extends this further to 4,700 NM (5,400 mi). The aircraft is currently on an international flight-test tour, known as 'Functional and Reliability Testing' (FnR).

The most successful aircraft family

The European manufacturer shows off the A320 as the most successful aircraft family ever. It is truly the most versatile aircraft platform ever built, and its flexible design is a testament to the original engineers from the 1980s. The A320 would finally pass its rival, the Boeing 737, in terms of orders for the first time in 2019.

American Airlines Airbus A320 airplanes at Phoenix Sky Harbor airport (PHX) in Arizona.
Photo: Markus Mainka / Shutterstock

As of August 2023, Airbus has delivered a total of 11,039 A320 family aircraft from 17,824 orders. The A320ceo has seen the most deliveries, while the A321neo has the most orders. Furthermore, about 10,328 A320s are in service, with over 340 operators worldwide.

Over 35 years since its first commercial flight, the A320 has become the family of choice for hundreds of operators, from full-service carriers to low-cost operators. However, while the world still awaits the entry of A321XLR next year, France is already looking at developing the successor of the A320.

What do you think of this development journey? Do you like the A320? Let us know in the comments.