In 2006 Airbus started the A320 Enhanced (A320E) programme as a series of improvements targeting a 4–5% efficiency gain with large
winglets (2%), aerodynamic refinements (1%), weight savings and a new
aircraft cabin. File:Airbus A320neo CFM LEAP nacelle.jpg|CFM International LEAP-1A engine File:Airbus A320neo PW1100G nacelle.jpg|Pratt & Whitney PW1100G engine, also known as the Pratt & Whitney GTF
Flight testing The first flight of the neo occurred on 25 September 2014. Its Pratt & Whitney
PW1100G-JM
geared turbofan ('GTF') engine was certified by the
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on 19 December 2014. After 36 months, the A320neo and A321neo had flown around 4,000 hours for certification of the two powerplant versions. Of these 4,000 hours flown, 2,250 were with PW GTFs and 1,770 with CFM LEAPs. The A320neo is half as
loud as an A320 at take-off, with an 85-decibel
noise footprint.
Entry into service The first delivery of the aircraft slipped slightly,
Lufthansa taking delivery of the first A320neo on 20 January 2016 and deploying it on its first commercial flight from
Frankfurt to
Munich on 25 January 2016. Two hundred deliveries were targeted in 2017, but as Pratt & Whitney faced ramp-up difficulties, Airbus expected that thirty aircraft would be parked awaiting engines. In 2015, Airbus started a new wing project, named
Wing of Tomorrow (WoT), A new $1–2 billion carbon-composite wing could be used in the A321neo-plus-plus, compared to $15 billion for a completely new design. The new wing is made from
composite material. It is first seen as an upgrade to the existing, mostly metal A320 family wing, which was already upgraded many times. Announced in January 2016, a €44.8 million facility was built in
Filton, with 300 engineers. The new wing design and tests take place in this Filton facility. In May 2021, Airbus announced that for improved aerodynamic performance the wing will be longer and thinner with
folding wingtips to access existing airport gates. The current A320neo family
wingspan of 36m with an
aspect-ratio of 9 will be extended by ground-folding wingtips to 45m with an aspect-ratio of 14. In September 2021, Airbus announced starting the assembly of in total 3 full-size "Wing of Tomorrow" prototypes. The first prototype was completed in December 2021. The flapping wing section flight tests are targeted to begin in late 2023. In June 2023,
GKN Aerospace announced a further progress by delivering the first fixed
trailing edge for the “Wing of Tomorrow”. It is manufactured in a high-rate low-cost
resin transfer moulding out of autoclave composite process, which supports the targeted low-cost of Airbus by avoiding an
autoclave. ==Operational history==