Following an agreement with the Irish Air Line Pilots’ Association (IALPA), Aer Lingus (EI, Dublin International) will again receive two A321-200NY(XLR), said Adrian Dunne, the airline’s Chief Operations Officer.

“We now have the cost certainty to welcome the A321neo (XLR) to Aer Lingus, with the first two aircraft arriving in the fourth quarter of 2024,” he said in a social media post. The Irish Times reported that IAG International Airlines Group could allocate up to six XLRs to the Irish carrier; the remaining four will arrive in 2025. Aer Lingus has not yet announced which routes the new jets will operate on.

The sister company Iberia (IB, Madrid Barajas) continues to be the first operator of the new Airbus narrow-body type, a spokesman told ch-aviation.

Aer Lingus was the original launch operator of the XLR. However, due to a dispute over pilot salaries, IAG dropped Aer Lingus and instead chose Iberia as the launch operator for the A321neo (XLR). The XLR is scheduled to enter commercial service in mid-November, when the Spanish airline begins operating it from Madrid to Boston.

Recently, A321neo (XLR) msn 11348 was seen in Aer Lingus livery (although its engines still bear the Iberia logo). Meanwhile, EC-OIL (msn 11504) is already fully painted in the Spanish airline’s livery.

ch-aviation has asked Aer Lingus for a comment.

In 2019, IAG ordered fourteen A321neo(XLR), six for Aer Lingus and eight for Iberia.