New Airbus A321XLR for Qantas calls into Brisbane

QANTAS AIRBUS A321XLR VH-OGA (MSN 12323)

The highly anticipated Airbus A321XLR for Qantas finally arrived in Sydney yesterday, completing its journey from Hamburg to Sydney via Bangkok. The plane was greeted by a water cannon salute. Sadly, there was lingering heavy rain from this week’s “bomb cyclone”, which forced the cancellation of a planned media event. Qantas is the first airline in the Asia-Pacific, and fourth globally, to take delivery of the A321XLR.

This morning, it made its first flight from Sydney to Brisbane. Sources tell me it will be here for a week before returning to Sydney to begin services.
Using the callsign QF6041, the aircraft's delivery flight first headed to Bangkok, covering 10,496 nm – the longest flight by an in-service XLR to date. After a 20-hour rest, it resumed its journey with a 6,675 nm trip to Sydney.

The new aircraft – registered VH-OGA and named Great Ocean Road – is the first of 28 A321XLRs currently on order to replace some of the Qantas’ older Boeing 737-800 series jets which are approaching 25-years of age, as well as 12 more XLRs for its Jetstar subsidiary.

The registration, VH-OGA, has been used by Qantas previously on one of its long retired 767.

• It first had a test registration as 'N6055X'
• It entered onto the Australian Aircraft Register as VH-OGA on the 30th of August 1988
• It operated final revenue service Melbourne (Tullamarine) - Sydney (Kingsford Smith) as QF464 on the 19th of November 2009
• It was cancelled from the Australian Aircraft Register on the 6th of August 2010

Funny how things work out, the exact aircraft has had a new lease on life and the aircraft is sitting here on the ground in Brisbane as Astral Air and is now wearing the registration 5Y-SVR 

ASTRAL AVIATION BOEING 767-338 5Y-SVR (MSN 24146)

30/08/1987 VH OGA Qantas
01/05/2011 N316CM Air Transport International
13/08/2014 N316CM Amerijet International 

07/2024 Stored
24/04/2025 5Y-SVR Astral Aviation