Airbus

Airbus A340-600

346 A346 Out of Production

At 75.36 metres, the Airbus A340-600 is the longest Airbus aircraft ever built, a four-engine wide-body designed for very high capacity on long routes. It seats about 326 passengers in two classes and up to 475 single-class, with four Rolls-Royce Trent 556 turbofans giving a range near 13,900 km at 871 km/h. First flown in 2001, it has a 63.5-metre wingspan and a maximum takeoff weight of 380,000 kg. Conceived as a competitor to the Boeing 747-400, the -600 offered comparable capacity without a jumbo's size, but its four engines left it at a fuel-cost disadvantage against emerging twinjets, which limited its commercial life.

Dimensions

Length: 75.36 m
Wingspan: 63.45 m
Height: 17.22 m
Cabin Width: 5.28 m

Performance

Range: 13,900 km
Cruise Speed: 871 km/h
Max Speed: 913 km/h
Service Ceiling: 12,500 m
Category: ultra-long-haul

Capacity

Typical Seats: 326
Max Seats: 475
Cargo Volume: 198.00 m³
Size: wide-body

Engines

Count: 4
Type: Turbofan
Model: Rolls-Royce Trent 556

Airlines (6)

Mahan Air 2 Iberia Airlines 2 South African Airways 1 Air Atlanta Icelandic 1 Qatar Airways 1 Lufthansa 1

Family Variants

Airbus A340-300

Engine Profiles

Rolls-Royce Trent 500

About Airbus A340-600

全長75.36mを誇るエアバス史上最長の機体。A340-600は747-400への対抗機として設計されましたが、燃費コストで双発機との競争に苦しみました。

Frequently Asked Questions

The Airbus A340-600 typically seats 326 passengers in a standard three-class configuration. In a two-class layout, it can carry up to 380 passengers. At 75.4 m in length, the A340-600 was the longest commercial aircraft in the world when it entered service in 2002, a record it held until the Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental was delivered in 2012.

The Airbus A340-600 has a maximum range of approximately 14,600 km (7,900 nautical miles), enabling ultra-long-haul routes such as Johannesburg to Atlanta, Munich to Los Angeles, or Singapore to London. The aircraft is powered by four Rolls-Royce Trent 556 engines. While the four-engine configuration provided ETOPS-free routing over oceans, it ultimately proved less fuel-efficient than modern twin-engine wide-bodies.

The A340-600 cabin is 5.28 m wide with a typical economy arrangement of 2-4-2 seating in eight abreast. Business class is usually configured with 1-2-1 or 2-2-2 seating depending on the airline. The long fuselage provides ample space for premium cabin products, and several airlines installed onboard bars, lounges, or duty-free shops in their A340-600 configurations.

Major operators of the A340-600 included Lufthansa, Virgin Atlantic, Iberia, South African Airways, and Qatar Airways. Most airlines have now retired the type in favor of more fuel-efficient twin-engine aircraft like the Airbus A350 and Boeing 787. Lufthansa was the launch customer and largest operator with 24 aircraft, all of which were retired by 2020. Only a handful of A340-600s remain in active passenger service today.

The A340-600 was retired early primarily because its four Rolls-Royce Trent 556 engines consumed significantly more fuel than modern twin-engine alternatives. The Boeing 787-9 and Airbus A350-900 can carry a similar number of passengers over comparable ranges while burning 25-30% less fuel. Rising fuel prices in the 2010s accelerated retirements, and the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 prompted most remaining operators to permanently ground their A340-600 fleets.