American Airlines, which initially ordered 50 Airbus A321XLR aircraft, has confirmed that its order book now stands at 40 aircraft, including five that Airbus has already delivered.
35 deliveries remaining
In a statement to The Engine Cowl, an American Airlines spokesperson reiterated the comments that Devon May, the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the airline, made during the Q4 2025 earnings call, which outlined that the carrier has 40 A321XLRs on order.
During the call, May added that American Airlines expects to expand its “highest-rated and most consistent” product across its long-haul fleet in 2026 with the delivery of 10 A321XLR and 11 premium Boeing 787-9 aircraft.
The spokesperson also noted that at the Goldman Sachs Industrials and Materials Conference in December 2025, May said that on the narrowbody fleet side, the airline is in “great shape on the [A321XLR] and we have the ability to change the orders around the NEOs, and we have the ability to change that to the XLR variant if we want to grow the long-haul capable fleet, but right now, we are in great shape.”
“[…] we have another 35 A321XLR on order.”
The airline reiterated the number of A321XLRs on order when it announced on February 19, 2026, that it will continue using CFM International LEAP-1A engines for its upcoming A321neo, including A321XLR deliveries.
“American has the youngest fleet of the legacy U.S. carriers, with 84 A321neos and five A321XLRs in its fleet, with an additional 120 A321neos and 35 A321XLRs on order through 2032 […].”
Rytis Beresnevicius
Three A321XLRs stuck in Europe
American Airlines already has two A321XLRs in active service, while another three, registered as N300NY, N301NY, and N302NY, are currently parked at Ostrava Leos Janacek Airport (OSR) in Czechia.
In July 2025, when American Airlines formally took delivery of N300NY, the carrier’s spokesperson told Aviation Week that the airframe will remain in Czechia until seat supply chain issues will be sorted out.
Now, the carrier’s representative said that the airline has “nothing additional to share” about when the trio could potentially join the active fleet.
The two A321XLRs that are in active service, N303NY and N305NY, have been flying the carrier’s transcontinental services between New York John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) and Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).
N303NY arrived in the US on October 22, 2025, while N305NY landed on American soil on December 17, 2025.
American Airlines will fly its first transatlantic A321XLR flight from JFK to Edinburgh Airport (EDI) on March 8.
Rytis Beresnevicius
