Qatar Airways has converted 10 of the Airbus A321neos it has ordered to the long-range variant, the A321LR.

The Oneworld member says it will use the A321LRs to connect its Doha base to "new growing markets" where demand is not sufficient for larger widebody aircraft or which lie beyond the range of current types.

Group chief executive Akbar Al Baker states that the first of the 10 aircraft will be delivered in 2020. The carrier has 50 A321neos on order.

With a range of 4,000nm (7,400km), the A321LR can carry 206 passengers in a two-class layout or 244 in single-class configuration.

The jet has a maximum take-off weight of 97t, compared with 93.5t for a standard A321neo, and is also differentiated by structural reinforcements to the wing and the centre wing box and by the option of adding a third fuel tank in the cargo compartment.

In November 2018, Israeli carrier Arkia became the first customer to take delivery of an A321LR.

Source: Cirium Dashboard