The Helpful Guide to Frontier’s Airbus A321 Aircraft

Have you booked or are planning on booking a flight on board a Frontier Airlines Airbus A321?

We have you covered. The Airbus A321 is a narrowbody aircraft that is versatile enough to fly all types of routes for Frontier Airlines. 

In this guide, we will discuss the routes you can expect to fly on an Airbus A321, whether Frontier’s A321 is comfortable to fly on, and what Frontier passengers have to say about their experience flying on the Airbus A321.

When Did Frontier Get The Airbus A321?

Frontier Airlines currently runs an all-Airbus fleet. They first acquired their Airbus A321-200 aircraft during the early 2010s. In 2014, Frontier put in an order to purchase the new Airbus A321neo. The average age of Frontier’s A321 fleet is 3.7 years old.

Currently, Frontier owns 21 Airbus A321-200s. The fleet is also supplemented by another 25 Airbus A321neos (new engine option).

One thing about Frontier Airlines is that they prefer to operate brand-new aircraft. Brand new aircraft have less maintenance costs compared to older aircraft. The engines on newer aircraft have a small number of hours on them and should operate much better. The airframes should have less stress. New parts for maintenance should be more readily available. 

Upgrading to newer aircraft helps Frontier’s bottom line because new aircraft are made to be more fuel-efficient. The A321neo is one of the more efficient domestic widebody aircraft on the market. The engines need less gas to go farther and have fewer vibrations & noise making it a comfortable ride for passengers’ and aircraft maintainers’ dreams.

Frontier is planning to expand further from the already efficient A321neo and has already ordered the Airbus A321XLR (extra long range) which has an even longer flight range. It’ll be interesting to see Frontier’s use case for the XLR. Will they expand into more international destinations? Can we expect to see Frontier challenge JetBlue Airways in the European narrowbody flight market?

What Routes Does Frontier Use The Airbus A321 on?

Frontier Airlines uses the Airbus A321 interchangeable for any route in its system. The aircraft can efficiently fly short-haul and long-haul flights without an issue. 

Since the A321 holds a greater passenger capacity than its fleet mates, the A319 & A320, you can expect to fly on the Frontier A321 on flights to larger markets. For example, a flight between Las Vegas and Atlanta.

You can also expect to fly on the A321 for Frontier’s international flights. Again, based on the popularity of the flight and Frontier’s need to accommodate more people. The long range and more passenger seating make the A321 a perfect choice for these types of routes.

Overall, the chances of you flying on a Frontier A321 largely depend on which aircraft is available for the airline at the time.

See below for several of the routes we identified Frontier uses an A321 on:

Is Frontier’s Airbus A321 Comfortable to Fly on?

Ultra-low-cost airlines have historically not been the most comfortable airlines to fly on. The goal of an ultra-low-cost airline is to get customers from A to B, as cheaply as possible to maximize the amount of profits per flight. 

Your experience on board Frontier’s Airbus A321 probably won’t stray away from this trend. However, there are some bright spots specifically with Frontier’s new A321neos that might make the flight a little less miserable like less engine noise.

For travelers who need comfort on their flights, Frontier Airlines might not be the best option. Along with the lack of amenities on board their aircraft, the airline charges high baggage fees if your luggage is overweight. This is supposed to incentivize you to pack lighter. Lighter luggage weights on aircraft mean the aircraft needs less fuel to get from A to B.

However, if you can skip the creature comforts and need a cheap flight to get to your next destination, continue to our next section to learn about some of the amenities you can find onboard Frontier’s Airbus A321 aircraft.

Cabin Configurations and Inflight Amenities

Frontiers Airbus A321 Seats

Frontier Airlines Airbus A321 aircraft are comprised of 230 seats. For comparison, Delta Air Lines sets their Airbus A321s to carry only 192 passengers. This means that it’s going to be a cramped cabin environment onboard Frontier’s A321. 

More passengers means that other comforts need to be sacrificed and Frontier chose to sacrifice the padding on the seats. 

The seats are as bare bones as they get. If you think of a plastic seat at your favorite sports team’s stadium with a bit more padding, you have an idea of the type of seats you can find on the Frontier A321.

The seats are narrow, only 18 inches in width. However, that is on par with what passengers get on JetBlue’s Airbus A321s. They beat Spirit Airlines and Allegiant Air in that category who both have 17-inch seats.

Frontier offers 30 – 32 inches of legroom in its regular passenger class. For its premium class, called “Big Stretch” that legroom number is bumped up 36 to 38 inches. 

Although Frontier is in the middle of the pack in terms of seat width and pitch, the lack of padding and support will make passengers feel like they’re flying in a smaller seat.

Frontier’s A321 Seating Configuration

The seating configuration on board Frontier’s A321s is two 3 seat columns separated by one aisle. Frontier does this to cram the airplane with as many seats as possible.

Frontier’s “Big Stretch” seating is found in the first 3 rows of the aircraft and the exit rows. In totality, 5 rows are dedicated to “Big Stretch” seats.

Customer Service & Amenities Onboard Frontier A321

Customer service and other amenities are fairly limited on board Frontier aircraft. Passengers can expect nothing to be complementary on these flights. There are snack boxes, soft drinks, and alcohol that can be purchased onboard the aircraft. But other than that, you probably need to think ahead and purchase your own snacks before you board the aircraft.

In conjunction with Frontier’s initiative to save on fuel by limiting aircraft weight, the airline has removed all inflight entertainment systems. There is no wifi or any other way to stream movies, TV, or music. 

Review of Frontier’s Airbus A321 Service

As already identified in a previous paragraph, you can expect many of the reviews about the flight experience aboard Frontier’s Airbus A321 to be very negative.

Passengers are expecting similar service to what you could expect on low-cost airlines like JetBlue Airways and Southwest Airlines. However, when you fly on an ultra-low-cost airline like Frontier, you get the bare minimum.

We scoured the internet for reviews that we identified as helpful for passengers to get a glimpse of what to expect flying on Frontiers A321 or for prospective passengers who need some more information before they purchase their ticket.

“I like Frontier but if your rich, probably better to fly other airlines. I accept that Frontier is delayed more than others, no magazines, just water served and seats have less cushion….”

Seat Maestro

“Frontier charges for carry-on space and the bins definitely were not full when we pushed back. In this instance, I embrace the carry-on fee. Frontier puts 230 passengers on their version of the Airbus A321. In comparison, American appears to seat 187 in the US Airways config….Would I fly Frontier again? Sure. I definitely would consider them on a case-by-case basis…As a leisure traveler, I would absolutely look at Frontier for future trips. “

Pizza In Motion

“Compared to the A320 I flew out to Denver on, the A321neo featured a tray table that was nearly double the size (still smaller than standard), which allowed me to open it and place my 15-inch laptop on during the flight…The seats are so thin and there is no recline so I suppose that gives the illusion of more legroom.I’m not going to ever go out of my way to fly Frontier, but when it is 1/7 the cost of a legacy carrier and I am traveling light, it really makes a lot of sense.

Live and Let’s Fly

First impressions boarding the 4 year old Airbus A321 was not good to put things mildly. The aircraft had stained carpet and gum stuck to the side of the seats which can be noticed during boarding…Immediately after sitting down it becomes apparent how stiff and tight the seats are… Frontiers onboard product has hard uncomfortable seating even for Ultra Low Cost Carrier standards. The thin padding made the seat unbearable after sitting in it for over an hour. A very small tray table barely fits a can of soda and makes using a computer impossible. One area where Frontier excels though is their cabin crew. 

The Path Less Traveled

Sources

https://seatguru.com/airlines/Frontier_Airlines/Frontier_Airbus_A321.php

https://www.flightradar24.com

https://www.planespotters.net/airline/Frontier-Airlines

https://www.flyfrontier.com/