Identify an Airbus A320 Family Aircraft

The Airbus A320 family consists of short-to medium-range, narrow-body, twin-engine, passenger jet airliners by Airbus. They have become icons within the aviation community for their quietness, effectiveness, and price. They are very common in our skies. However, with a large amount of aircraft flying, it may be hard to identify one of these birds. So you may wonder, how do I identify one? Well, read on!

Steps

Identifying a Standard A320 Family Aircraft

  1. Identify the nose. The most noticeable part of the A320 family is the nose. The nose, unlike a Boeing 737, is rounded and slightly smaller than its Boeing counterpart. The nose can, of course, be found at the front of the aircraft just below the flight deck windows. Make sure that it is not pointed and is much rounder than surrounding aircraft. It also points out in front of the main flight deck window.
  2. Identify the wings and winglets. The wings of an A320 family aircraft are slightly curved back. They start out going straight out of the fuselage however then angle back slightly towards the back of the aircraft. Continue by identifying the flaps. There are two flaps on the back of the wings. A long one and a short one. They can be found by looking at the back fo the wing and extend and retract upon landing and take off. There are two types of winglets of an A320 family aircraft, standard winglets, and sharklets. The standard winglets are small and are on the end of the wing. They have an arrow-like shape and point at certain angles up and down. Sharklets are longer and bend out of the end of the wing and point up at a slight angle. They are much longer than the arrow splits. It is very rare, however, some A320 family aircraft can lack winglets of any kind. However, there are very few of them.
  3. Identify the engines. The A320 family can use two main kinds of engines. For the A319, A320, and A321, the aircraft uses two CFM56 turbofan engines. They can be found under the wings on either side of the fuselage. For the A318 and sometimes A319, two Pratt & Whitney PW6000 engines are used. When in reverse thrust, the PW6000 is more noted for its "flower" or blooming engine spoilers. There is one on all four sides of the engine, and they bloom out or extend into a flower-like shape.
  4. Identify the type of A320 family aircraft. In the A320 family, there are four basic types. The small and discontinued A318, which is mostly used for private use. The slightly bigger A319, used for passenger and private use. The main size, the A320, used for passenger use, and is the main type of A320 family aircraft. Finally, the A321, the elongated version of the A320. In order to identify the type of A320, look at the size of the fuselage. If the fuselage is small and short, it is either an A318 or A319. An A318's fuselage is 32 meters (104 feet) long, while an A319 is 33.80 meters (111 feet) long. If the fuselage is around medium size, it is most likely an A320. The fuselage of an A320 is 37.5 meters (123 feet) long. If the fuselage is elongated or long and thin, then it is an A321. The A321 is 44.5 meters (146 feet) long.
  5. Identify the operator. There are several operators of the A320 family, ranging from every continent on the planet. Start by finding out if the operator operates the A320. A list of operators can be found here. Major operators of the A320 Family include the following. Note: there are several more, however these are some of the biggest:
    • British Airways
    • United Airlines
    • Delta Airlines
    • EasyJet (all A320 fleet)
    • Alaska Airlines
    • China Eastern and China Southern
  6. Find the registration. This is one of the most important parts about identifying the aircraft, because the registration should tell you what the aircraft is. Start off by finding the registration, which can typically be found on the back of the fuselage just in front of the tail. Once you have the registration, jot it down in a notebook or on a document. When you finish, search up the registration online. Services like FlightAware, JetPhotos, or FlightRadar24 can help you with that.

Identifying the A320NEO Family

  1. Identify the engines. The A320NEO family looks practically identical to the standard A320 family. However, there are some major engine differences to identify. The NEO family can be powered by two different kinds of engines, varying to customer specifications. The two kinds are the PurePower PW1100G-JM made by Pratt and Whitney, and the LEAP-1A made by CFM International. Both of which are turbofan engines. The PurePower is larger and decently bulky. It is shaped like a cylinder. It may be marked as the engine varying on if the operator leaves the engine info on their livery. The LEAP-1A is slightly smaller than the PurePower and curves into a much smaller shape towards the back of the engine.
  2. Identify the sound. The sound of an A320NEO family aircraft is much quieter due to the engines. Record the sound of the aircraft and compare it with the sound of a regular A320 family aircraft. If it is the same or slightly louder than it is probably a regular A320 aircraft. If it is quieter than it probably is an A320NEO family aircraft.
  3. Identify the operator. There are a few different operators of the NEO family. Once you have the operator, jot it down for research later. As stated, there are quite a few operators of the NEO family, and a list can be found here. They can include the following, but not limited to:
    • Spirit Airlines
    • Air China
    • EasyJet
    • Air India
  4. Identify the registration. This is simple, the registration can be found on the back of the plane right in front of the tale. Make sure to jot it down, and then research it. As stated above, you can simply look it up online or use one of the services provided above.

Tips

  • The A320 family is a very common aircraft. They are pretty easy to find.
  • Make sure to save the information gathered about the aircraft for future use.

References

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