Last week, Australian low-cost carrier Jetstar decided to fly one of its aircraft to Melbourne's Avalon Airshow. The obvious choice of aircraft was one of its brand new Airbus A321LRs, although the nine-minute, 52-kilometer (31 miles) flight hardly taxed a plane with a range of 4,000 nautical miles (7,400 kilometers).

An integral part of the Qantas Group, Jetstar received its first A321LR in July 2022 and, since then, has added another four. It has another 13 to follow, with all 18 in service by around the middle of 2024. Adding even more range will be the 20 Airbus A321XLRs, which are expected to be with Jetstar commencing in 2024.

Even check-in was different

When Jetstar flew the A321LR to the airshow, it also took around 50 passengers, comprised of VIPs, politicians, staff, and selected media, including this writer. The Airbus A321LR used was delivered to Jetstar just before the end of 2022, soon after completing its first flight on December 15th. It carries the registration VH-OFQ and has a manufacturer's serial number of 11189.

Jetstar has its main base at Melbourne International Airport (MEL), and the Avalon Airshow is held at Avalon Airport (AVV), around a 50-minute drive from the center of Melbourne. While this was a promotional flight, it still carried an official flight number and the usual check-in, security screening, and boarding procedures at one of Jetstar's gates.

There are no commercial scheduled flights between Melbourne and Avalon airports, so check-in revealed the first sign that this was something different, even for the seasoned Jetstar staff.

At the check-in counter, there was a very strange look when I mentioned the Avalon flight, with a quizzical staff member gently pointing out that Jetstar does not fly to Avalon from Melbourne. Another agent concurred, but luckily before they called security and had me carted away, the flight appeared on the screen, much to my delight and their surprise.

The nine-minute flight

To fortify us for the journey ahead, the Jetstar flight attendants handed out tasty little food packs at the gate containing a drink, sandwich, cheese and biscuits, and a cookie. The flight, JQ7601, had a short taxi to the runway and, according to data from flightradar24.com, left the ground at 07:51 and was back on terra firma at Avalon Airport at 08:00.

The data shows it was in the air for nine minutes, reaching a cruising height of 4000 feet and a top speed of 242 knots before touching down in Avalon. All up, it was around 20 minutes from gate to gate, although the return flight in the afternoon took a little longer, probably due to the much busier airspace as we entered the peak times for Melbourne Airport.

After the passengers had left the aircraft, it was towed from the gate to the airshow staging area, where it stood for the rest of the day until our return to Melbourne Airport in the afternoon. It was parked alongside the gleaming Falcon, Embraer, and Gulfstream business jets but held its own and drew many visitors wanting to get up close and personal with an aircraft they can actually afford to fly on.

No easing into service for Jetstar's A321LRs

After inducting five of these long-range jets, Jetstar has developed a very effective process to have them in the air and earning money without delay. The airline has a team that goes to the Airbus facility in Hamburg to accept the aircraft and ensure it meets Jetstar's standards and is ready to go.

The ferry flight is a well-traveled route from Hamburg to Bengaluru (BLR) in India for an overnight stop and then to Perth (PER), Australia, before the final leg to Melbourne. This aircraft landed in Melbourne on December 25th at 07:03 and entered commercial service with a full day of domestic flying on December 28th.

Discover more aviation news for Australia and Oceania here

Have you been on a shorter flight in an Airbus A321LR? Let us know in the comments.

• 

  Airbus

  Stock Code:

  AIR

  Date Founded:

  1970-12-18

  CEO:

  Guillaume Faury

  Headquarters Location:

  Toulouse, France

  Key Product Lines:

  Airbus A220, Airbus A320, Airbus A330, Airbus A340, Airbus A350, Airbus A380

  Business Type:

  Planemaker

• 

  Qantas

  IATA/ICAO Code:

  QF/QFA

  Airline Type:

  Full Service Carrier

  Hub(s):

  Brisbane Airport, Melbourne Airport, Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport

  Year Founded:

  1920

  Alliance:

  oneworld

  CEO:

  Alan Joyce

  Country:

  Australia