Japan’s Civil Aviation Bureau approved All Nippon Airways (ANA) plans to introduce mixed fleet flying (MFF) for the A380 and A320 family aircraft, Airbus announced on October 14, 2021.

Airbus fly-by-wire aircraft from different families share many technical commonalities that extend to the flight deck and aircraft control systems. As a result, pilots can be certified to fly several different types of the manufacturer’s planes on a regular and concurrent basis. 

MFF aircraft types are unique to the Japanese airline. All Nippon Airways is set to become the first operator in the world to introduce the MFF between A320 and A380, Airbus explains. 

ANA flight crews will be able to fly a mixed pattern of short and long-haul services. The airline will be better positioned to match capacity with passenger demand as it will be able to interchange differently sized aircraft at short notice without crew-scheduling difficulties. 

“We are pleased that A320 and A380 MFF operations were approved by JCAB and that  ANA has become the world’s first airline to introduce it,” Stéphane Ginoux, Head of North Asia region for Airbus and President of Airbus Japan said in a statement.