Airbus A321-200 (A321-231) · N521UW · American Airlines

Airbus A321-200 (A321-231) illustration in American Airlines livery Illustrative image; it may differ from the actual aircraft.

Airbus A321-200 (A321-231)

A321-3944Active
RegistrationUSN521UW
Verified aircraft dataagainst the official civil aviation registerWhat does this badge mean?We checked that this aircraft’s registration, serial number and model match the official civil aviation register: FAA (United States), data as of Oct 8, 2026.That makes its identity more reliable. The verification expires after 12 months: if the register stops confirming it, the badge disappears.How we verify
OperatorAmerican Airlines
2operators
4incidents
0accidents
16logbook years
3photos

Airbus A321-200 (A321-231) built in 2009 in Hamburg. Operates for American Airlines. Previously flew for US Airways.

NewNearly newYoungMatureAgingOld
Mature · 17 years · ≈ 57,800 flight hours (approx.)
Vuelopedia is a work in progress: it currently holds about 30% of the information we expect to have by the third quarter of 2027. Although we use only official, highly reliable sources, some aircraft data and history may still contain errors or inaccuracies. We work hard to clear every anomaly from the records using specialized verification tools.

Recent flights

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Technical data

ManufacturerAirbus
Engines2× N/A
PropulsionTurbofan
Seats216 (F20 · C20 · W35 · Y141)
Built inHamburgo, Alemania
OwnerAmerican Airlines
MSN3944
VerificationIdentity verified against the official register of FAA (United States) · Oct 8, 2026

The model · Airbus A321

Figures for the A321-200 variant, the most representative of the family

Length44.5 m146 ft
Wingspan35.8 m117 ft
Height11.8 m39 ft
Range5,926 km3,200 NMWith a typical passenger load
Cruise speed828 km/h447 ktMach 0.78
Service ceiling12,131 m39,800 ftIt flies above Everest (1.4 times its height)
Maximum take-off weight93,500 kg206,132 lb
Maximum payload45,000 kg99,208 lbIts 185 passengers with baggage would weigh about 18.5 t; the rest is fuel and cargo
Typical capacity185 passengersUp to 230 in a high-density layout
Endurance7 h 09 minAt cruise speed, non-stop

With its 5,926 km range, from Phoenix it could fly non-stop as far as:

Beyond its rangeLIMLima6,261 km

The type first flew in 1993 (33 years ago) · About 3,400 units built · Still in production

Figures for the type, not for this particular aircraft: each variant and each configuration changes something. They are shown in both systems used in aviation.

Seating layout

20First
20Business
35Premium
141Economy

216 seats in total

Flight logbook

Year-by-year activity · source BTS (EE. UU.)

2025
American Airlines · 1,244 flights during the year · base Charlotte (CLT)
Main route of the year: Charlotte (CLT) → Orlando (MCO)
2024
American Airlines · 1,278 flights during the year · base Charlotte (CLT)
Main route of the year: Charlotte (CLT) → Tampa (TPA)
2023
American Airlines · 1,379 flights during the year · base Charlotte (CLT)
Main route of the year: Raleigh/Durham (RDU) → Charlotte (CLT)
2022
American Airlines · 1,261 flights during the year · base Charlotte (CLT)
Main route of the year: Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) → Charlotte (CLT)
2021
American Airlines · 977 flights during the year · base Charlotte (CLT)
Main route of the year: Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) → Charlotte (CLT)
59 days inactive
2020
American Airlines · 355 flights during the year · base Charlotte (CLT)
Main route of the year: Phoenix (PHX) → Chicago (ORD)
262 days inactive
2019
American Airlines · 1,268 flights during the year · base Charlotte (CLT)
Main route of the year: Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) → Charlotte (CLT)
2018
American Airlines · 1,212 flights during the year · base Charlotte (CLT)
Main route of the year: Orlando (MCO) → Charlotte (CLT)

Aircraft chronology

2009
Built
Assembled by Airbus in Hamburg, Germany.
Jun 9, 2009
Delivered to Airbus Deutschland
Delivered to Airbus Deutschland as D-AZAJ.
Jun 18, 2009
Transferred to US Airways
Transferred to US Airways.
Dec 10, 2013
Transferred to American Airlines
Transferred to American Airlines.
Oct 17, 2015
News
On October 17, 2015, the A321-231 aircraft (registration N521UW), operated by US Airways, was in the news. Source: American Airlines.
Source: American Airlines
Oct 12, 2017
Incident at Orlando
On October 12, 2017, the Airbus A321-231 aircraft (registration N521UW), operated by American Airlines, was involved in an incident at Orlando. Source: the FAA (United States).
Source: FAA
Oct 14, 2019
Incident at Las Vegas and Los Angeles
On October 14, 2019, the Airbus A321-231 aircraft (registration N521UW), operated by American Airlines, was involved in an incident at Las Vegas and Los Angeles. Source: the FAA (United States).
Source: FAA
Feb 6, 2022
Incident at Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) International Airport
On February 6, 2022, the Airbus A321-231 aircraft (registration N521UW), operated by American Airlines, was involved in an incident at Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) International Airport (United States) due to a hydraulic failure. Source: American Airlines.
Source: American Airlines
Aug 8, 2024
Incident at New York
On August 8, 2024, the Airbus A321-231 aircraft (registration N521UW), operated by American Airlines, was involved in an incident at New York. Source: American Airlines.
Source: American Airlines

Operators

2009-06-09
Registration D-AZAJ · Lessor: Hamburg
2009-06-18
Registration N521UW
2013-12-10
Registration N521UW
2015-04-08
Registration N521UW

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Current position of the aircraft

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Gallery

External photographs under a Creative Commons license. Click to enlarge in a new tab.

External photograph of the aircraft
James Willamor from Raleigh, NC, USA · Creative Commons (CC BY-SA)
External photograph of the aircraft
Aeroprints.com · Creative Commons (CC BY-SA)
External photograph of the aircraft
Tomás Del Coro from Las Vegas, Nevada, USA · Creative Commons (CC BY-SA)

Cite

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This page was last updated on October 15, 2026

APA

Vuelopedia. (2026, October 15). Airbus A321-200 (A321-231) · N521UW · American Airlines. Retrieved October 17, 2026, from https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/A321-3944

MLA

“Airbus A321-200 (A321-231) · N521UW · American Airlines.” Vuelopedia, Fundación Poderia, 15 Oct. 2026, vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/A321-3944. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

Chicago

Vuelopedia. “Airbus A321-200 (A321-231) · N521UW · American Airlines.” Fundación Poderia. Last modified October 15, 2026. https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/A321-3944.

Harvard

Vuelopedia (2026) Airbus A321-200 (A321-231) · N521UW · American Airlines. Available at: https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/A321-3944 (Accessed: 17 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{vuelopedia_en_aircraft_a321_3944,
  author       = {{Vuelopedia}},
  title        = {{Airbus A321-200 (A321-231) · N521UW · American Airlines}},
  publisher    = {Fundación Poderia},
  year         = {2026},
  date         = {2026-10-15},
  url          = {https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/A321-3944},
  howpublished = {\url{https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/A321-3944}},
  urldate      = {2026-10-17},
  note         = {Accessed 2026-10-17}
}

Wikipedia

{{cite web |url=https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/A321-3944 |title=Airbus A321-200 (A321-231) · N521UW · American Airlines |website=Vuelopedia |publisher=Fundación Poderia |date=2026-10-15 |access-date=2026-10-17 |language=en}}