It is the second largest commercial aircraft certified by the European Aviation Safety Agency for steep approach operations, behind the Airbus A220, allowing flights at airports such as London City.

Relative to other Airbus A320 family variants, it sold only small numbers with total orders for 80 aircraft placed.

[6] The AE31X, as it was tentatively dubbed, besides being a global industrial programme would have significantly deepened Sino-European commercial ties.

In addition, there were difficulties arising out of negotiations about technology transfer and production workshare, and a weak business case.

[16] The final proposal was for an aircraft seating 107 passengers in a two-class layout with a range of 3,350 kilometres (1,810 nmi; 2,080 mi).

America West Airlines, which had selected the Pratt & Whitney engines, amended its A318 orders, opting instead for A319 or A320 aircraft.

The biggest A318 customers as of 30 September 2017[update] were governments, executive and private jets (20), Air France (18), Avianca Holdings (15), lessor GE Capital Aviation Services (12) and Frontier Airlines (9).

The Airbus A318 Elite is aimed at the medium-range market for flights of up to 4,000-nautical-mile (7,400 km; 4,600 mi) range, with a choice of two cabin layouts seating up to 18 passengers, and powered by CFM engines.

[19] The optional devices, which will also be available on other Airbus A320 family models and are manufactured by Korean Air Aerospace Division, will increase the range of the aircraft to 5,930 kilometres (3,200 nmi; 3,680 mi) – an increase of 185 km (100 nmi; 115 mi) over a standard A318 with 107 seats in a two-class configuration.

[20] The Airbus A318 is a small commercial, narrow-body (single-aisle) aircraft with a retractable tricycle landing gear and is powered by two wing pylon-mounted turbofan engines.

It is a low-wing cantilever monoplane with a conventional tail unit having a single vertical stabilizer and rudder.

Pilots who are trained on the other variants may fly the A318 with no further certification, since it features a common flight deck and the same type rating as its sister aircraft.

The lighter weight of the A318 gives it an operating range 10% greater than the A320, allowing it to serve some routes that the A320 would be unable to: London – New York, Perth–Auckland and Singapore–Tokyo, for instance.

In March 2006, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) certified a modified control software enhancement to the Airbus A318 designed to allow the aircraft to perform steep approaches.

[24] It also provides alternative aural alerts to the crew and modifies spoiler deployment automatically below 37 metres (120 ft) on landing.

[24] Subsequently, in August 2009[25] Airbus delivered the first A318 with steep approach capability to British Airways, which began operating the route the following month as its Club World London City service, eventually having two such aircraft capable of flights between London City Airport and John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York.

On the eastbound leg from New York this limitation is not present and the aircraft can take all the fuel needed for the transatlantic route to London.

[30] As of 30 September 2017, 67 A318s remained in service with five airlines, in addition to governments, executive and private jets and undisclosed operators.