American Airlines has completed a series of transatlantic training flights meant to get pilots ready for the Airbus A321XLR.
Between Sept. 4 and 25, a group of American check pilots flew 42 flights between Philadelphia and Edinburgh, Scotland, using an A321neo.
American mainly uses its A320-family aircraft on routes within the U.S. and Canada, but the A321XLR, which the airline will start operating next year, has a range of up to 4,700 nautical miles, opening up new potential destinations.
For that reason, pilots must be trained in new regions, including the North Atlantic.
A group of eight check pilots flew with FAA inspectors so they could be trained and qualified to operate the A321 over the North Atlantic. The eight then trained the rest of the check pilot cohort, and now this larger group will start training American’s A320-family line pilots, initially from American’s New York pilot base.
The training the check pilots received focused on flight procedures unique to the North Atlantic, the use of radios different from those used on domestic flights, and suitable diversion airports in the region.
“These training flights were a huge success,” said Capt. Josh Hall, American’s A320 fleet captain, in a news release. “This effort sets us up nicely to begin training our line pilots to fly the A321XLR over the North Atlantic, and it was only made possible by the hard work and professionalism of our check pilots, the FAA, and our A320 flight training and fleet technical teams.”
The airline has not said which transatlantic routes the aircraft will serve, though more details will be shared “soon.”
Delivery of American’s first A321XLR is expected by the end of 2025. Initially, the aircraft will fly between New York and Los Angeles before being deployed in long-haul markets.
