The Airbus A321XLR has not been on new orders for several months, but will have a new operator, Uzbekistan carrier Qanot Sharq Airlines.
The Tashkent-based carrier has signed a leasing agreement with U.S.-based Air Lease Corporation to take delivery of three A321XLRs and two A321LRs between 2026 and 2027.
The aircraft will be transferred from Air Lease’s backlog.
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“We are pleased to further strengthen our partnership with Qanot Sharq and support the airline’s continued growth with the addition of five new Airbus A321neo LR/XLR aircraft,” said AJ Abedin, Senior Vice President of Marketing at Air Lease Corporation.
“We are excited to expand our partnership with Air Lease and take a significant step forward in expanding our fleet with these new Airbus A321neo LR and XLR aircraft,” said Nosir Abdugafarov, Owner of Qanot Sharq Airlines.
Qanot Sharq is the country’s first privately owned airline and was founded in 1998 but began service in 2021. It operates a small fleet of Airbus aircraft that includes one A320ceo, two A321neo and three A330-200 widebodies.
Destinations served from Tashkent include Tel Aviv, Istanbul, Jeddah, Medina, Phuket, Prague, Milan and Seoul.
The A321LR and A321XLR models have the longest range for narrow-body jets on the market today. While the first variant can fly for 4,000 nm, the second, which debuted in 2024, is capable of flying non-stop for 4,700 nm.
