AerScheduler

Ownership guide

Airbus A321-231

279 registered in the US, built from about 1998 to 2018, 379 seats, most with the Iae V2533. Its Airworthiness Directives, its engines', and what to check before buying one.

The fleet

Registered in the US
279
Built
1998 to 2018
Half built by
2015
Seats
379
Engine type
Turbofan
Most common engine
Iae V2533

Engines installed

  • Iae V2533270 aircraft (97%) · 8 ADs, 2 with a repeat action

From the FAA aircraft registry, rebuilt daily. Years are those recorded on each registration.

Airworthiness Directives

27 current ADs name the A321-231 airframe, 6 with a repeat action; 8 more were superseded. Its engines carry 8 more. 3 equipment ADs name the model.

The ones that come back

ADs with a repeat action: an inspection or replacement at an interval, for as long as the AD applies. These are the airworthiness costs an owner keeps paying.

Every AD for the Airbus A321-231

What gets reported

1,500 Service Difficulty Reports since 2016: a mechanic or operator files one when a part fails or is found defective.

Systems reported most

  1. Emergency Lighting254
  2. Passenger/Crew Doors214
  3. Emergency Equipment190
  4. Fuselage Miscellaneous Structure106
  5. Elevator Structure89
  6. Service Doors66

Parts reported most

  1. Bottle, low pressure217
  2. Cylinder, low pressure85
  3. Damper, low pressure64
  4. Battery, no test48
  5. Hinge arm, excess play47
  6. Hinge fitting, excess play45

The latest reports

  • 2026-10-14 · Emergency Exits · Bottle, low pressure

    Aircraft was not grounded: r2 emergency exit door assist bottle low. maintenance charged r2 door assist bottle damper per amm 52-22-00-614-002-a.

  • 2026-10-13 · Passenger/Crew Doors · Bottle, low pressure

    Aircraft was not grounded: flight attendant door panel cautioning check door pressure on l1 door. maintenance serviced l1 door damper cylinder per amm 52-10-00, ok for continued service.

  • 2026-10-13 · Passenger/Crew Doors · Bottle, low pressure

    Aircraft was not grounded: l4 door damper is low psi. maintenance serviced l4 door damper with nitrogen per amm 12-14-29. ops check good no leaks found at this time.

  • 2026-10-05 · Passenger/Crew Doors · Bellcrank, out of adjust

    Aircraft in base maintenance: the l4 door damper cylinder percussion bellcrank finger adjustment is out of limits - maintenance adjusted the l4 door percussion bellcrank finger of the door dampener per amm 52-13-14-820-002

From the FAA's Service Difficulty Reporting System, refreshed monthly. Counts of what was reported, not failure rates: most of general aviation reports voluntarily, and a busy training fleet reports more than a private one.

Accident record

7 accidents since 2010, 0 fatal, 0 aircraft destroyed.

What happened

  1. Turbulence encounter4
  2. Ground collision2
  3. Tailstrike1

Phase of flight

  1. Enroute4
  2. Standing2
  3. Landing1

The latest

DateWhereWhat happenedInjuriesNTSB number
2026-07-06Somerset, COEnroute: Turbulence encounterSeriousDCA26LA270
2024-08-08Waycross, GAEnroute: Turbulence encounterSeriousDCA24LA255
2024-02-08Boston, MAStanding: Ground collisionNoneDCA24LA092A
2023-05-05Charlotte, NCLanding: TailstrikeNoneDCA23LA278
2021-07-05Miami, FLEnroute: Turbulence encounterSeriousDCA21LA176
2021-06-25New orleans, LAEnroute: Turbulence encounterSeriousDCA21LA164

From the NTSB's aviation accident database, refreshed monthly; accidents only, homebuilts left out. Counts, not rates: nobody publishes how many hours each model flies, and a training fleet flies far more than a private one. Look up any case by its number in the NTSB's CAROL.

What it costs to run

Per hour flown

Per year, flown or not

Fuel
$0/hr
Engine reserve
$0/hr
A year
$0
All in, per hour
$0/hr

Everything else is yours to fill in: insurance, hangar and overhaul prices vary too much by pilot, airport and shop for a default to mean anything. Nothing you type leaves this page.

Before you buy one

  1. Run its N-number through the AD check: every AD that names its airframe and engine, as a checklist to take to the logbooks.
  2. For each repeat-action AD (6 on the airframe), find the last compliance in the logbooks and when the next one is due.
  3. Compare the engine's time since overhaul with its maker's published overhaul time, and look for the reason behind any long gap in flying.
  4. Ask the mechanic doing the pre-buy to look hard at the emergency lighting and for low pressure bottles: they are what gets reported most on this model.
  5. 3 equipment ADs name the A321-231 (a muffler, a seat belt, a display): find out which of that equipment is installed.
  6. Check the registration, the airworthiness certificate and the date of the last annual inspection.
  7. Work out the sales or use tax your state will charge with the aircraft tax calculator.

Questions

How many Airbus A321-231s are registered in the US?
279, in the FAA aircraft registry.
When was the Airbus A321-231 built?
From about 1998 to 2018. Half of those registered today were built by 2015.
What engine does the Airbus A321-231 have?
Most have the Iae V2533 (97% of those registered).
What are common problems with the Airbus A321-231?
In 1,500 Service Difficulty Reports filed with the FAA since 2016, the systems reported most were emergency lighting, passenger/crew doors, emergency equipment, and the part most often reported was a low pressure bottle.
How many accidents has the Airbus A321-231 had?
7 in the NTSB's database since 2010, 0 of them fatal. The most common defining event was turbulence encounter. These are counts, not rates: how many hours the fleet flew is not published.
How many Airworthiness Directives does the Airbus A321-231 have?
27 current ADs name the A321-231 airframe, 6 of them with a repeat action, and 8 more name its engines. Whether each applies to one aircraft depends on its serial number and installed equipment.

Figures from the FAA aircraft registry and the FAA's Airworthiness Directives, rebuilt daily. An AD listed for a model is one to read; whether it applies to one aircraft depends on its serial number, equipment and records.