The Airbus A318 is the smallest member of the Airbus A320 family, a family of short- to medium-range, narrow-body, commercial passenger jet airliners manufactured by Airbus Industrie.The A318 carries up to 132 passengers and has a maximum range of 3,100 nmi (5,700 km; 3,600 mi).Final assembly of the aircraft takes place in Toulouse, France.
The aircraft shares a common type rating with all other Airbus A320 family variants, allowing existing A320 family pilots to fly the aircraft without the need for further training. It is the largest commercial aircraft certified by the European Aviation Safety Agency for steep approach operations, allowing flights at airports such as London City.
The A318 entered service in July 2003 with Frontier Airlines. Relative to other Airbus A320 family variants, it has sold in only small numbers with total orders for only 81 aircraft placed at 30 September 2011.
