I just flew the A346 with Lufthansa from FRA to HKG 2 days ago. It was very cool to experience the jet with it's pretty fun launch from the very end of runway 18. Upon exploring the aircraft during flight, I could tell that Lufthansa has been keeping up with the maintenence with the aircraft as the plane felt like it was in very good condition. The only way you could tell that the plane was showing it's age is in the cabin pressure and cabin humidity when compared to current generation jets. The bathrooms under the main deck is also a really nice touch. All of the 6 bathrooms were also very spacious. It was definitely worth going out of my way to fly with the quad jet.
You're lucky to have gotten that chance, I hope mine will come soon. With Lufthansa's new first-class equipped A350s delayed a bit further, I hope my window of opportunity has grown slightly wider.
I flew the 789 with LH a little bit ago, from MSP to FRA, flew the A321 LH from FRA-FCO, then FCO-CAN on a China Southern 789, then CAN-XIY, a China Southern 773, then a a332 from CTU-SZX, then a 789 back to Rome from Guangzhou on CZ, then Rome to Washington-Dulles United 764ER . Finally I took a E190 from Dulles to MSP, United Express. I hope you had as great of a trip that I did, I was just in HK last Thursday. I love FRA, there are so many beautiful planes: 747-8i, 747-400, 787-9, 777, 767, a330, a343, a346. All really cool widebodies that other airlines don’t fly anymore. I love LH and hope you do too😍
I love the A340. I used to service Iberia’s -300s and -600s at SJU in the early 2000s. The feeling when pushing back the extremely long -600 was amazing and required a bit of concentration because the gate area wasn’t very spacious. More recently, I was able to capture AirHub’s -300 that was flying to BWI for Air Senegal back in 2022. Btw, regarding Lufthansa’s BOG flight, they also use the -300 on this route. Another regular Edelweiss route is ZRH-SJO.
Flew a Turkish Airlines A340 from JFK to IST back in 2005. Such a fantastic plane to fly, and still one of my favorite flights of all time. Slow lumbering climb with those 4 underpowered engines doing their best "I think I can" version of aviation.
The European Air Cargo A340-600 has virtually daily flights flying from Bournemouth England nonstop to Chengdu China. Generally departing 14-30 to 17-30 from Bournemouth, and landing from around 08-00 to 11-00 in the mornings at Bournemouth. They pass each other generally between 23-30 and 00-30 GMT, UTC within a few miles of each other coming into and out from China. Also, just before Christmas 2023, there was upto 9 flights a week between Bournemouth and Chengdu.
I always felt safe on the A340. Growing up in Canada I flew them a lot to Europe. Both Air Canada & Lufthansa operated them out of there. The CP option was a DC-10 from YVR & YYC in the summer, 767s for the winter sched. MUCH preferred flying the 340, no question.
Very interesting. I have also recently discovered an important status about the A340. As of December 2023, at least a total of 127 Airbus A340 are still operational across 4 variants : 8 Airbus A340-200 64 A340-300 17 A340-500 and 38 A340-600 He did not mention Surinam Airways btw. I have never flown onboard the A340 but hopefully i will have a chance to get onboard the A340 in the near future.
I’ve only had one A340 flight, and it was on a then-brand new A340-600 with Virgin Atlantic in 2005. That was one long airplane and I loved every minute of it.
I flew on the Virgin Atlantic 600s too regularly from London to the Caribbean. It was a great plane and I really miss it, the 787 is not a worthy replacement.
Flew one A340-600 of Lufthansa in 2019 on MUC-JFK route. What a gorgeous machine it is! Graceful and spacious, with such a remarkable slow and unhurried climb, was happy to fly it while still in active service.
I have been an A340 lover since 1991 . I love this quad . I guess LH will be the last A340 operator . Not to mention that by the Airbus Consortium, the Germans were the leading people who conducted the A340 project . My r e a l regret is to have not seen this beauty flying in UTA and SWISSAIR ( not Swiss ) colours .
Lovely looking aircraft. Used to fly AirAsiaX 343 from LGW/STN to KUL. And yes, it was the longest take off I've ever experienced! And the MD-11 was another classic, but only flew it once Swissair ZRH to SGN. Plane spotting is just not the same these days!
Certainly one of the best looking subsonic aircraft of all times, I flew on a Virgin A340-600 in 2012 from DC to.LHR, entering the aircraft at the front and walking along to the economy section at the back made you appreciate the length of this monster, I had plenty of opportunity to explore the cabin as there were under 70 passengers on the flight, Its such a pity that the 346 didn't sell in higher numbers, I hope to take a flight with Lufthansa before they are finally retired.
Its known as an underpowered aircraft. Airbus designed it for a wonky engine that never went ahead. So they had to scramble for an off the shelf engine. In the 1970s. It was never really suited for such a large plane. Then came R-R.
I flew the A340-300 in 2013 with Air France from Paris CDG bound for Montreal, and I also had the chance to see the flight deck in flight as one of my friend was captain on 330/340 before (he's now captain on 777).
It's one of the best aviation videos I have seen in a year. I especially enjoyed flight maps for each major carrier. The flight maps made it for me. I want to see more flight maps. Great video. Keep it up. I canr't wait to try the Denver to Frankfort route. thanks
Flew one round trip with A340-300, aka 5APU. I was surprised how long it stayed accelerating on the runway but ultimately very similar experience as the 330
Said goodbye for now to the A-340 in Dallas a few months back as a Lufthansa 777 assumed the route during the peak travel season, hope to see it return a few more times before they retire
I came to the comment section to see what good jokes had been posted. I was surprised to see none, and instead lots of praise and interesting info about the jet. GG, Airbus!
Some American re-fit company (like Sierra Nevada) should be evaluating the A340-500/600 as a candidate to replace USAF's nearly worn-out 747-200s as the new Survivable Airborne Command Center aircraft. USAF is insisting on a quad-jet. Boeing has made a proposal that doesn't meet USAF requirements and said "take it or leave it - we don't need this contract."
Lufthansa also flies the A343 on their 3x weekly LH500/501 from FRA to Rio de Janeiro GIG. I was on it both directions now during my Christmas/New Year’s holiday. But LH plans to deploy the Boeing 789 in the route before the end of this year.
SAA is expecting another a340-300 sometime soon, increasing their fleet size to 2. (Pretty sure this is the only passenger airline who is expecting additional a340 aircraft)
The RR Philharmonic and the Hair Dryer Rack are nice planes to fly as a pax, and 4 Trents make any pilot happy! Of course, if one drives the 343, seeing the trees up close for miles and miles as the Earth curves away after takeoff can be stressful, but you win some, you lose some
I believe that Lufthansa is one of the last airlines to fly the A340-600 in its original configuration. Once the 777-9 starts to arrive in (hopefully) early 2025, Lufthansa plans to retire both the 747-400 and A340-600 fairly quickly. The Lufthansa A340-300's will likely be phased out within the next few years by the equivalent A350-900.
You missed some flights operated by the A340-300. LH flies three times a week with the A343 to SJO from FRA. Edelweiss also deploys the A343 to SJO from ZRH as well.
Its a very comfortable and quieter aircraft than the more modern aircrafts. I have recently flown Lufthansa A 340 300 - Mumbai BOM to Frankfurt Great aircraft, smooth flying experience and great crew too, very impressed with it 😊😊😊
just no. The A380 - as stated - will be flying after the A340 is long gone from regular flying. The only chance the A340 will have is flying in Iran but even then...
I expect the same, even if the only one left is the Iranian government aircraft. That is, if the government of Iran continues to exist in its current form for the next 25 years. Though their sustainability is debatable.
the azerbaijan airlines a340-600s are in teruel, spain. they stand there, you can see them in google maps. i dont know if they are getting maintenence or are just parked
I flew on a Swiss A340 in 2004 from ZHR to JFK, adding to my list of Airbus aircraft. The obvious last company to fly them will be a cargo airline, but I would not discount a Governmental VIP user.
I love this plane, I have flown several hundred thousand miles with Swiss on the A340 in all three classes and this plane is definitely my favorite. I hate twin engines like the Boeing 777-300ER which are horribly noisy with their monstrous reactors.
Air Lanka now Sri Lankan airlines was a launch customer for Asia back in the day they where operating the type. They operated the a340-300. They both the type to I think replace the 747 200s
Some company in china just bought the A340-600s from Thai Airways a several months ago and the first aircraft just ferried out from u-tapao pattaya to China last month they said they will modify the aircraft to cargo.
I think it’s fair to say the A340-600 is one of the coolest-looking airplanes ever made. I really want to try and a get myself on one.
I agree.
You will not be disappointed.
It is cool to see a modern standard wide body with 4 engines.
Yeah
you can ride on the Lufthansa A340-600, they still have it.
I just flew the A346 with Lufthansa from FRA to HKG 2 days ago. It was very cool to experience the jet with it's pretty fun launch from the very end of runway 18. Upon exploring the aircraft during flight, I could tell that Lufthansa has been keeping up with the maintenence with the aircraft as the plane felt like it was in very good condition. The only way you could tell that the plane was showing it's age is in the cabin pressure and cabin humidity when compared to current generation jets. The bathrooms under the main deck is also a really nice touch. All of the 6 bathrooms were also very spacious. It was definitely worth going out of my way to fly with the quad jet.
You're lucky to have gotten that chance, I hope mine will come soon. With Lufthansa's new first-class equipped A350s delayed a bit further, I hope my window of opportunity has grown slightly wider.
I flew the 789 with LH a little bit ago, from MSP to FRA, flew the A321 LH from FRA-FCO, then FCO-CAN on a China Southern 789, then CAN-XIY, a China Southern 773, then a a332 from CTU-SZX, then a 789 back to Rome from Guangzhou on CZ, then Rome to Washington-Dulles United 764ER . Finally I took a E190 from Dulles to MSP, United Express. I hope you had as great of a trip that I did, I was just in HK last Thursday. I love FRA, there are so many beautiful planes: 747-8i, 747-400, 787-9, 777, 767, a330, a343, a346. All really cool widebodies that other airlines don’t fly anymore. I love LH and hope you do too😍
@@magnustan841I hope you will also experience what I got to experience, so many great planes❤
@@SourGrapes-u1v Thanks. I just booked a flight on her for December! Super excited to see what flying in that beast is really like. Stay safe! ❤️
@@magnustan841 the a340?
I love the A340. I used to service Iberia’s -300s and -600s at SJU in the early 2000s. The feeling when pushing back the extremely long -600 was amazing and required a bit of concentration because the gate area wasn’t very spacious. More recently, I was able to capture AirHub’s -300 that was flying to BWI for Air Senegal back in 2022. Btw, regarding Lufthansa’s BOG flight, they also use the -300 on this route. Another regular Edelweiss route is ZRH-SJO.
Flew a Turkish Airlines A340 from JFK to IST back in 2005. Such a fantastic plane to fly, and still one of my favorite flights of all time. Slow lumbering climb with those 4 underpowered engines doing their best "I think I can" version of aviation.
The European Air Cargo A340-600 has virtually daily flights flying from Bournemouth England nonstop to Chengdu China. Generally departing 14-30 to 17-30 from Bournemouth, and landing from around 08-00 to 11-00 in the mornings at Bournemouth. They pass each other generally between 23-30 and 00-30 GMT, UTC within a few miles of each other coming into and out from China. Also, just before Christmas 2023, there was upto 9 flights a week between Bournemouth and Chengdu.
I always felt safe on the A340. Growing up in Canada I flew them a lot to Europe. Both Air Canada & Lufthansa operated them out of there. The CP option was a DC-10 from YVR & YYC in the summer, 767s for the winter sched. MUCH preferred flying the 340, no question.
One of my friends flew on an Edelweiss A340 to Thailand recently. I am so jealous
Book a trip to Phuket!
Very interesting. I have also recently discovered an important status about the A340.
As of December 2023, at least a total of 127 Airbus A340 are still operational across 4 variants :
8 Airbus A340-200
64 A340-300
17 A340-500 and
38 A340-600
He did not mention Surinam Airways btw. I have never flown onboard the A340 but hopefully i will have a chance to get onboard the A340 in the near future.
One note for summer service, LA uses the 346 for KCLT. Winters we get the 350's. Thanks and cheers
Long live the A-340! 🛩💙🛩
I’ve only had one A340 flight, and it was on a then-brand new A340-600 with Virgin Atlantic in 2005. That was one long airplane and I loved every minute of it.
I flew on the Virgin Atlantic 600s too regularly from London to the Caribbean. It was a great plane and I really miss it, the 787 is not a worthy replacement.
Edelweiss also flies the A340-300 to San Jose, Costa Rica (SJO). Experience was great for what is a considered a leasure airline
Surinam Airways also has one that's flying from Suriname to Holland
Flew one A340-600 of Lufthansa in 2019 on MUC-JFK route. What a gorgeous machine it is! Graceful and spacious, with such a remarkable slow and unhurried climb, was happy to fly it while still in active service.
A340-600…. My favorite plane
I have been an A340 lover since 1991 . I love this quad . I guess LH will be the last A340 operator . Not to mention that by the Airbus Consortium, the Germans were the leading people who conducted the A340 project . My r e a l regret is to have not seen this beauty flying in UTA and SWISSAIR ( not Swiss ) colours .
As I never flew in an a340 but I think that it’s lovely plane has a good record reliability record and a lot of nice colours
Surinam airways flys between Paramaribo and Amsterdam have also an Airbus A340-300
Indeed they are missing from this overview. They have daily flights, I think 4x/ week.
Lovely looking aircraft. Used to fly AirAsiaX 343 from LGW/STN to KUL. And yes, it was the longest take off I've ever experienced! And the MD-11 was another classic, but only flew it once Swissair ZRH to SGN. Plane spotting is just not the same these days!
Certainly one of the best looking subsonic aircraft of all times, I flew on a Virgin A340-600 in 2012 from DC to.LHR, entering the aircraft at the front and walking along to the economy section at the back made you appreciate the length of this monster, I had plenty of opportunity to explore the cabin as there were under 70 passengers on the flight, Its such a pity that the 346 didn't sell in higher numbers, I hope to take a flight with Lufthansa before they are finally retired.
Flying with edelweiss this summer ZRH-YVR on the A340-300.. very excited!
I frequently see the South African A 340 take off from Accra Ghana and I recognize it even without seeing it just by the sound of it's four engines.
theyre adding another one and acquiring it
\
The used A340-500s would be perfect as AWACS planes for the airforce. 🧐
"Proving the type's unreliability"
Yeah or maybe... just maybe... the ineptitute of the maintenance infrastructure of the German Air Force.
The older 340s have very small engines for a wide body. Even with 4 of them it must have needed a lot of runway to get off the ground.
Lufthansa flies one of them to Denver, now that’s a looooooong takeoff roll
Its known as an underpowered aircraft. Airbus designed it for a wonky engine
that never went ahead. So they had to scramble for an off the shelf engine.
In the 1970s. It was never really suited for such a large plane. Then came R-R.
@@michaelrmurphy2734it’s not underpowered. It’s a lot lighter than the -500 and -600. Runway requirements at max take off weight are the same.
@@Pbairsoftmanjust like any 4 engine airplane. But not underpowered.
I flew the A340-300 in 2013 with Air France from Paris CDG bound for Montreal, and I also had the chance to see the flight deck in flight as one of my friend was captain on 330/340 before (he's now captain on 777).
Edelweiss also flies their A340s to Bogota and the return service is via Cartagena.
A340’s greatest advantage as speciality aircraft/ VIP jets is its parts commonality with A330 which is still very popular
Love me a good video on the A340, especially the A340-600 just flew on two of them LH424 and LH425 in Nov. 2023 with the one and only Lufthansa
It's one of the best aviation videos I have seen in a year. I especially enjoyed flight maps for each major carrier. The flight maps made it for me. I want to see more flight maps. Great video. Keep it up. I canr't wait to try the Denver to Frankfort route. thanks
Such beautiful machines A340 and A380!
It's of an outstanding beauty ❤❤❤
Flew one round trip with A340-300, aka 5APU. I was surprised how long it stayed accelerating on the runway but ultimately very similar experience as the 330
Said goodbye for now to the A-340 in Dallas a few months back as a Lufthansa 777 assumed the route during the peak travel season, hope to see it return a few more times before they retire
Lufthansa doesnt fly the 777 though? They only use some Freighter Models, must have been something else
i flew it last year (lufthansa). In the return flight a flew the variant in which the lavatories are located underneath the passenger deck
Was and still is a great aircraft both from appearance and flight comfort.
What about the A340 of Brunei's sultan and government?
You forgot Edelweiss Flight to Bogotá (Bogota)
I came to the comment section to see what good jokes had been posted. I was surprised to see none, and instead lots of praise and interesting info about the jet. GG, Airbus!
you've missed the route from Almaty to Frankfurt where I flew on a Lufthansa A340 last month.
the most quiet quad jet ever made n flew… A340-300!!! Olympic !!!!
A340-600 ❤
Both Edelweiss and Lufthansa currently fly to Costa Rica with 340s about 2-3 times per week.
Some American re-fit company (like Sierra Nevada) should be evaluating the A340-500/600 as a candidate to replace USAF's nearly worn-out 747-200s as the new Survivable Airborne Command Center aircraft. USAF is insisting on a quad-jet. Boeing has made a proposal that doesn't meet USAF requirements and said "take it or leave it - we don't need this contract."
Lufthansa also flies the A343 on their 3x weekly LH500/501 from FRA to Rio de Janeiro GIG. I was on it both directions now during my Christmas/New Year’s holiday. But LH plans to deploy the Boeing 789 in the route before the end of this year.
I've never gotten to fly one, but I'm going to make a point of booking on one with Lufthansa now.
I reckon the last remaining Airbus A340 could be Qatar Amiri.
SAA is expecting another a340-300 sometime soon, increasing their fleet size to 2. (Pretty sure this is the only passenger airline who is expecting additional a340 aircraft)
It’s just such a cool awesome aircraft👏😊
Majestic plane
The RR Philharmonic and the Hair Dryer Rack are nice planes to fly as a pax, and 4 Trents make any pilot happy! Of course, if one drives the 343, seeing the trees up close for miles and miles as the Earth curves away after takeoff can be stressful, but you win some, you lose some
I believe that Lufthansa is one of the last airlines to fly the A340-600 in its original configuration. Once the 777-9 starts to arrive in (hopefully) early 2025, Lufthansa plans to retire both the 747-400 and A340-600 fairly quickly. The Lufthansa A340-300's will likely be phased out within the next few years by the equivalent A350-900.
I flew a few times AF's A340-300 on YUL-CDG. I always loved the comfort I had for my legs in economy. I'm 1m91.
Became obsolete as soon as the 777 came online ..
ETOPS also dealt the death blow to the quad engine widebody.
My guess is the last operators will have routes to and from Australia over the Pacific and/or Indian Oceans.
A330 is the way to go imo
You missed some flights operated by the A340-300. LH flies three times a week with the A343 to SJO from FRA. Edelweiss also deploys the A343 to SJO from ZRH as well.
Interesting, the two times I flew with Swiss' A340 was from Zürich to Tokyo Narita.
I want to know why these carriers are continuing with A340 and not upgrading. Just genuinely curious.
Looking forward to see if A380 are going to be the future “sanctioned country” jet
Its a very comfortable and quieter aircraft than the more modern aircrafts. I have recently flown Lufthansa A 340 300 - Mumbai BOM to Frankfurt
Great aircraft, smooth flying experience and great crew too, very impressed with it 😊😊😊
Since December 2023 ; Edelweiss is flying to Bogota with their A340 's.
Edelweiss is going to start service to Denver this May with their A340s, I’m very excited!
Zurich Airport is also lovely to planespot due to the visitor deck right next to the runway.
I will miss this plane
Swiss flies the A343 to JNB as well
Last time I flew A340 was with PR from London LHR to Manila, Philippines
I think I rode an A340 between JFK and Zurich in June and/or July 2016, but that's 8 years ago now
I flew on a Qatar 346 from Doha down to Sri Lanka and back. It's so long.
I’m suspecting that the A380 may be gone before the A340
I doubt it. Conviasa will probably buy used A380s after their A340s break down
I doubt it. Emirates intend to have A380s still in operation into the 2040s according to previous Simple Flying videos.
just no. The A380 - as stated - will be flying after the A340 is long gone from regular flying. The only chance the A340 will have is flying in Iran but even then...
I expect the same, even if the only one left is the Iranian government aircraft. That is, if the government of Iran continues to exist in its current form for the next 25 years. Though their sustainability is debatable.
The A380 will be gone before an A340 reaches top of climb
Air India shall purchase 2 A340s from non-operating Parked Airlines and deploy those flights from Kolkata to Tokyo and Kolkata to Shanghai.
Saw one of Lufthansa’s A340’s last week at ORD 👍🏼
Last oper prob lufthansa 747’s still standing
the azerbaijan airlines a340-600s are in teruel, spain. they stand there, you can see them in google maps. i dont know if they are getting maintenence or are just parked
I wonder what happened to the Virgin 340 600. The first airline to fly the type. My company was the first to touch that aircraft when it came to jfk.
Despite being underpowered, I'll always love the -300 variant.
Love this plane 🍻
I flew on a Swiss A340 in 2004 from ZHR to JFK, adding to my list of Airbus aircraft. The obvious last company to fly them will be a cargo airline, but I would not discount a Governmental VIP user.
I really would say Lufthansa, they will fly the a340 and the 747 until they can’t find spare parts
I love this plane, I have flown several hundred thousand miles with Swiss on the A340 in all three classes and this plane is definitely my favorite.
I hate twin engines like the Boeing 777-300ER which are horribly noisy with their monstrous reactors.
It's such a good looking aircraft, though. Kinda sad it's not made today.
I honestly thought South Africa had retired all their A340s
Lufthansa is also flying the -300 to Rio
pretty sure i`ve seen Iberia`s A340 flying in my home country. San Jose, SJO, Costa Rica. Edeweiss as well
Air Lanka now Sri Lankan airlines was a launch customer for Asia back in the day they where operating the type. They operated the a340-300. They both the type to I think replace the 747 200s
you guys forgot the Surinam Airways A340
You missed Air Suriname, which now operates a single A340-300
Due to 04 engines This aircraft is not popular as high maintenance cost. is main factor.
Air Belgium flys one too.
Im guessing that Lufthansa will be the last operator of the A340
Some company in china just bought the A340-600s from Thai Airways a several months ago and the first aircraft just ferried out from u-tapao pattaya to China last month they said they will modify the aircraft to cargo.
What about the Surinam A340?
Indeed! Daily flights Paramaribo - Amsterdam, I think 3 or 4 times per week!
I've saw a good amount of A340 in Tehran international airport or IKA where i live
I've seen the SAA. A340 in Accra
Actually the RTAF uses two a340's and did we forget about suriname airlines?
South african airways should bring back a340s
you forgot surinam airways, they operate one A340-300
you forgot to mention LAX
Look old liner jet 🤩
A340's don't fail.