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	Airbus A320 Short to Medium-Range Jetliner

DESCRIPTION: Designed to compete with the Boeing 737 and McDonnell Douglas MD-80, the A320 was the first Airbus entry in the narrow-body market. Although the aircraft borrows features from the larger A300 and A310, it is essentially a new design equipped with many state-of-the-art engineering innovations. The A320 was the first commercial jetliner with a full fly-by-wire control system. Other advanced features include widespread use of composite materials to reduce weight, sophisticated avionics including a gust-alleviation system for a smoother ride, advanced cockpit warning systems, and high-technology engines to reduce noise and fuel consumption. The primary variant, the A320-200, also incorporates winglets to improve aerodynamic efficiency. Thanks to these innovations, the A320 has proven to be very reliable and economical in service. The A320 has become the most best selling Airbus design to date and is so successful that it has spawned three related aircraft. Relatives of the A320 includes the stretched A321 and shortened A319 and A318. Over 4,000 examples of the A320 family had been delivered out of more than 6,400 ordered by September 2009. Data below for A320-200 Last modified 02 May 2011
HISTORY:
First Flight	22 February 1987
Service Entry	28 March 1988 (with Air France)
CREW:	two flight crew: pilot, co-pilot
PASSENGERS:	150 in two classes, 180 in one class
COST:	$76.9 million [2008$]
DIMENSIONS:
Length	123.25 ft (37.57 m)
Wingspan	111.83 ft (34.09 m)
Height	38.58 ft (11.76 m)
Fuselage Diameter	12.92 ft (3.94 m)
CABIN:
Length	89.83 ft (27.38 m)
Width	12.08 ft (3.68 m)
Height	7.29 ft (2.22 m)
Main Passenger Door	6.08 x 2.67 ft (1.85 x 0.81 m)
CARGO CAPACITY:
Baggage Volume	unknown
Cargo Volume	1,321.1 ft³ (37.41 m³)
Container Capacity	7 LD3
Freight Doors	unknown
WING:
Root Airfoil Section	unknown
Tip Airfoil Section	unknown
Area	1,317.5 ft² (122.4 m²)
Aspect Ratio	9.50
Sweepback Angle	25° at quarter chord
Control Surface Areas	ailerons: unknown flaps: unknown leading-edge slats: unknown spoilers: unknown
TAIL:
Tailplane Span	40.83 ft (12.44 m)
Tailplane Area	unknown
Tailfin Area	unknown
Control Surface Areas	tailplane: unknown elevators: unknown rudder: unknown
Thrust/Weight Ratio	unknown
PROPULSION:
Powerplant	two CFM International CFM56-5 turbofans or two International Aero Engines V2500-A turbofans
Engine Rating	2 x 25,000 lb (112.2 kN) [CFM56-5A1 or V2500-A1] 2 x 26,500 lb (117.9 kN) [CFM56-5A3 or CFM56-5B4 or V2527-A5]
Engine Intakes	Two nacelles on wing pylons
Fuel Type	Jet A, Jet A-1
PERFORMANCE:
Max Level Speed (at altitude)	560 mph (900 km/h) at 30,000 ft (9,140 m), Mach 0.82
Max Level Speed (at sea level)	unknown
Cruise Speed	525 mph (845 km/h) at 37,000 ft (11,275 m), Mach 0.795
Takeoff Speed	170 mph (275 km/h)
Landing Speed	unknown
Takeoff Distance	6,700 to 8,000 ft (2,335 to 2,440 m)
Landing Distance	4,300 to 4,600 ft (1,310 to 1,400 m)
Maximum Climb Rate	unknown
Service Ceiling	39,000 ft (11,890 m)
Range	2,600 to 3,000 nmi (4,815 to 5,555 km) with 150 passengers
g-Limits	unknown
SYSTEMS:
Avionics	ARINC 700 digital suite including SFENA autopilot, Honeywell flight management system
Flight Controls	Electronic Flight Control System with digital fly-by-wire control of wing and tail surfaces
Electrical	115/200 volt, 400 Hz AC supplied by 90 kVA generators attached to each engine and an APU, DC supplied by transformer rectifiers
Braking	Carbon wheel brakes
COMPOSITION:	Aluminum: majority of structure made of improved aluminum alloys Composites: nosecone, tail unit, wing control surfaces, wing and fuselage junction fairings, engine nacelles and pylons, landing gear doors and fairings, floor panels
VARIANTS:
A320-100	First production model; 21 built
A320-200	Primary production variant featuring winglets and an extra fuel tank for increased range
MMA	Maritime Multirole Aircraft based on the A320 developed by EADS and Alenia as a military surveillance model and equipped with surveillance radar, sensors, and communications gear as well as an internal weapons bay and wing pylons
OPERATORS:
Civil	A&F Aviation ACES Colombia Adria Airways AerCap Holdings Aer Lingus Aeroflot Aerolineas Argentinas Aero Lloyd AerVenture Afriqiyah Airways Air 2000 Air Arabia Air Arabia Egypt AirAsia Air Astana Air Berlin Air Blue Air Cairo Air Canada Air China Air China Group Import and Export Trading Company Air Comet Air Deccan Air Europe Italy Air France Air Inter Air Jamaica Air Lease Corporation (ALC) Air Luxor Air Macau Air Malta Air New Zealand Air Nippon Airways Air One Airtours International Alitalia All Nippon Airways Altitude Aircraft Leasing Trust America West Airlines Ansett Australia Armavia Austrian Airlines Avianca Aviation Capital Group Aviation Lease and Finance Company (ALAFCO) Avolon AWAS Azerbaijan Airlines Bahrain Air Balkan Bulgarian Airlines BOC Aviation Braniff British Airways British Caledonian British Mediterranean Airways British Midland Airlines Canada 3000 Canadian Capital Lease Aviation Cebu Pacific China Aviation Supplies Import and Export Group China Eastern Airlines China National Aero-Technology Import & Export Corporation China Northwest Airlines China Southern Airlines CIT Aerospace CNAC-Zhejiang Airlines Condor Berlin Conquest Vacations Croatia Airlines CSA Czech Airlines Cyprus Airways Delta Air Lines Dragonair Dubai Aero-space Enterprise (DAE), DAE Capital East Star Airlines Edelweiss Air Egyptair Etihad Airways Eurocypria Airays Finnair Fly FTI Frontier Airlines GB Airways GE Commercial Aviation Services (GECAS) Genesis Lease GMT Global Republic Aviation GoAir Gulf Air Hainan Airlines Hellas Jet Hong Kong Airlines Iberia Iberworld Indian Airlines IndiGo Israir Jazeera Air JetBlue Airways Jetclub Jetstar Jetstar Asia JMC Airlines Juneyao Airlines Kingfisher Airlines Kuwait Airways Lacsa LAN Chile LAN Ecuador Libyan Airlines Lionhart Aviation Limited Lotus Air LTU International Lufthansa Mandala Airlines Mauritania Airways MenaJet Mexicana Middle East Airlines Monarch Airlines MyTravelLite NASair National Air Services (NAS) Nepal Airlines Niki Northwest Airlines Nouvelair OceanAir Pakistan International Airlines Philippine Air Lines Premiair Qantas Qatar Airways Royal Jordanian Ryan International Sabena SAS Scandinavian Airlines Saudi Arabian Airlines Shanghai Airlines Shenzhen Airlines Shorouk Air Siberia Airlines Sichuan Airlines Silkair Singapore Aircraft Leasing Enterprise Sichuan Airlines Skyservice South African Airways Spanair Spring Airlines Srilankan Airlines Star Airlines Swissair Swiss International Air Lines Syrianair TACA TAM Brazil TAM Linhas Aereas TAME TAP Air Portugal Ted Thomas Cook Airlines Tiger Air Trans Aer Trans Asia Airways Transgulf Express Transmeridian Airlines Tunisair Turkish Airlines (THY) United Airlines Ural Airlines US Airways Uzbekistan Airways Vietnam Airlines Virgin America Virgin Sun Volare Airlines Vueling Airlines Wataniya Airways Wind Jet Wizz Air Yes Charter Airlines Zest Airways
Government/Military	Oman, Al Quwwat al-Jawwiya al-Sultanat Oman (Royal Oman Air Force)
3-VIEW DIAGRAM:
SOURCES: Aboulafia, Richard. Jane's Civil Aircraft. Glasgow: Harper Collins Publishers, 1996, p. 30-31, Airbus A320. Airbus A320 site Donald, David, ed. The Complete Encyclopedia of World Aircraft. NY: Barnes & Noble, 1997, p. 35-36, Airbus Industrie A320. Donald, David, ed. The Encyclopedia of Civil Aircraft. San Diego, CA: Thunder Bay Press, 1999, p. 35-41, Airbus A320. Müller, Claudio. Aircraft of the World. NY: Muddle Puddle Books, 2004, p. 30-31, Airbus A320-200. Rendall, David. Jane's Aircraft Recognition Guide, 2nd ed. London: Harper Collins Publishers, 1999, p. 204, Airbus A320. Taylor, Michael. Brassey's World Aircraft & Systems Directory 1996/1997. London: Brassey's, 1996, p. 288, Airbus A320. Taylor, Michael J. H. Brassey's World Aircraft & Systems Directory 1999/2000. London: Brassey's, 1999, p. 271-272, Airbus A320.
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