Airbus A319

The first member of the A320 family was the A320 which was launched in March 1984 and first flew on 22 February 1987.[4] The family was extended to include the stretched A321 (first delivered 1994), the shortened A319 (1996), and the further shortened A318 (2003). The A320 family pioneered the use of digital fly-by-wire flight control systems, as well as side stick controls, in commercial aircraft. The A319 was developed at the request of Steven Udvar-Hazy, the former president and CEO of ILFC according to The New York Times.[5]

The A319 design is a shortened fuselage, minimum change derivative of the A320 with its origins in the 130- to 140-seat SA1, part of the Single-Aisle studies.[6] The SA1 was shelved as the consortium concentrated on its bigger siblings. After healthy sales of the A320/A321, Airbus re-focused on what was then known as the A320M-7, meaning A320 minus seven fuselage frames.[7] It would provide direct competition for the 737-300/-700.[6] The shrink was achieved through the removal of four fuselage frames fore and three aft the wing, cutting the overall length by 3.73 metres (12 ft 3 in).[2][8][9] Consequently, the number of overwing exits was reduced from four to two. High-density A319s, such as 156-seat aircraft used by easyJet, retain four overwing exits.[10] The bulk-cargo door was replaced by an aft container door, which can take in reduced height LD3-45 containers.[9] Minor software changes were made to accommodate the different handling characteristics; otherwise the aircraft is largely unchanged. Power is provided by the CFM56-5A or V2500-A5, derated to 98 kN (22,000 lbf), with option for 105 kN (24,000 lbf) thrust.[11]

With virtually the same fuel capacity as the A320-200 and fewer passengers, the range with 124 passengers in a two-class configuration extends to 6,650 km (3,590 nmi), or 6,850 km (3,700 nmi) with the "Sharklets".[2] The A319's wingspan is wider than the aircraft's overall length.

Airbus began offering the new model from 22 May 1992, and the A319's first customer was ILFC, who signed for six aircraft.[12] Anticipating further orders by Swissair and Alitalia, Airbus launched the $275 million (€250 million) programme on 10 June 1993.[9][12][13] On 23 March 1995, the first A319 underwent final assembly at Airbus's German plant in Hamburg, where the A321s are also assembled. It was rolled out on 24 August 1995, with the maiden flight the following day.[14] The certification programme took 350 airborne hours involving two aircraft; certification for the CFM56-5B6/2-equipped variant was granted in April 1996, and the qualification for the V2524-A5 started the following month.[15]

An EasyJet A319

Delivery of the first A319, to Swissair, took place on 25 April 1996, entering service by month's end.[15] In January 1997, an A319 broke a record during a delivery flight by flying 3,588 nautical miles (6,645 km) on the great circle route to Winnipeg, Manitoba from Hamburg, in 9 hours 5 minutes.[15] The A319 has proved popular with low-cost airlines such as EasyJet, with 172 delivered.[1]

A total of 1,484 of the A319ceo (current engine option) model have been delivered.[1] The direct Boeing competitor was the Boeing 737-700.

The A319CJ (rebranded ACJ319 "Elegance") is the corporate jet version of the A319. It incorporates removable extra fuel tanks (up to six additional Center Tanks) which are installed in the cargo compartment, and an increased service ceiling of 12,500 m (41,000 ft).[16] Range with eight passengers' payload and auxiliary fuel tanks (ACTs) is up to 6,000 nautical miles (11,100 km).[17][18] Upon resale, the aircraft can be reconfigured as a standard A319 by removing its extra tanks and corporate cabin outfit, thus maximising its resale value. It was formerly also known as the ACJ, or Airbus Corporate Jet, while starting with 2014 it has the marketing designation ACJ319.

ACJ319 operated by the Austrian operator MJET

The aircraft seats up to 39 passengers, but may be outfitted by the customers into any configuration. Tyrolean Jet Service Nfg. GmbH & CO KG, MJET and Reliance Industries are among its users. The A319CJ competes with other ultralarge-cabin corporate jets such as the Boeing 737-700-based Boeing Business Jet (BBJ) and Embraer Lineage 1000, as well as with large-cabin and ultralong-range Gulfstream G650, Gulfstream G550 and Bombardier's Global 6000. It is powered by the same engine types as the A320. The A319CJ was used by the Escadron de Transport, d'Entraînement et de Calibration which is in charge of transportation for France's officials and also by the Flugbereitschaft of the German Air Force for transportation of Germany's officials. An ACJ serves as a presidential or official aircraft of Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Brazil, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Germany, Italy,[19] Malaysia, Slovakia, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, and Venezuela.

Starting from 2014, a modularized cabin version of the ACJ319, known as "Elegance", is also available. It is said to be able to lower cost and ease reconfiguration.[20]

A Qatar Airways A319LR

The A319LR is the longer-range version of the A319. The typical range of the A319LR is increased up to 4,500 nautical miles (8,300 km) compared to the standard A319. Qatar Airways was the launch customer, receiving two A319-100LRs,[21] PrivatAir received two A319LRs in 2003,[22] and Eurofly acquired two in 2005.[23]

Airbus A319neo prototype at Toulouse–Blagnac Airport.

The A319neo is the shortest variant of the Airbus A320neo family of airliners developed since December 2010 by Airbus,[24] with the suffix "neo" meaning "new engine option". It is the last step of the A320 Enhanced (A320E) modernisation programme, which was started in 2006. The A319neo replaces the original A319, which is now referred to as A319ceo, for "current engine option".

In addition to the new engines, the modernisation programme also included such improvements as: aerodynamic refinements, large curved winglets (sharklets), weight savings, a new aircraft cabin with larger hand luggage spaces, and an improved air purification system.[25][26] Customers will have a choice of either the CFM International LEAP-1A or the Pratt & Whitney PW1100G engines.

These improvements in combination are predicted to result in 15% lower fuel consumption per aircraft, 8% lower operating costs, reduced noise production, and a reduction of nitrogen oxide (NO_x) emissions by at least 10% compared to the A320 series, as well as an increase in range of approximately 500 nautical miles (900 km).[27]

The A319neo is the least popular variant of the Airbus A320neo family, with total orders for only 61 aircraft placed as of 30 September 2023, compared with 4,234 for the A320neo and 5,422 for the A321neo.[1]

The Airbus A319 MPA (Maritime Patrol Aircraft) is a military derivative of the Airbus A319. Development was announced in 2018[28] by Airbus Defence and Space[29] to compete against the Boeing P-8 Poseidon, which is a derivative aircraft of the Boeing 737 manufactured in the United States.

The new observation platform A319OH which means "Offener Himmel" (meaning "Open Sky") is equipped with electro-optical sensors, an EO-S/digital camera and an infrared sensor (IR-S). It is based on an A319CJ from Lufthansa Technik.[30]

This aircraft is designed for the German Air Force which uses it to perform surveillance missions as part of the Treaty on Open Skies. Twenty missions are planned every year by the German Air Force, and it is offered for lease by to other countries who want to conduct such mission without the appropriate equipment.

Data as of September 2023.[1]