Airbus A340

Airbus A340

The Airbus A340 is a long-range, wide-body passenger airliner that was developed and produced by Airbus. In the mid-1970s, Airbus conceived several derivatives of the A300, its first airliner, and developed the A340 quadjet in parallel with the A330 twinjet. In June 1987, Airbus launched both designs with their first orders and the A340-300 took its maiden flight on 25 October 1991. It was certified along with the A340-200 on 22 December 1992 and both versions entered service in March 1993. The larger A340-500/600 were launched on 8 December 1997; the A340-600 flew for the first time on 23 April 2001 and entered service on 1 August 2002. Differences between the A330 and A340 include four 151 kN (34,000 lbf) CFM56s instead of two high-thrust turbofans and a three-leg main landing gear instead of two. Both airliners have fly-by-wire controls, as well as a similar glass cockpit. On 10 November 2011, Airbus announced that the production of the A340 model reached its end, after 380 orders had been placed and 377 delivered from Toulouse, France. As of March 2023, there were 203 A340 aircraft in service with 45 operators worldwide. Lufthansa is the largest A340 operator with 27 aircraft in its fleet.

Variants
A340-200  
The −200 is one of two initial versions of the A340; it has seating for 261 passengers in a three-class cabin layout with a range of 13,800 kilometres (7,500 nmi). It is powered by four CFMI CFM56-5C4 engines. It initially entered service in May 1993. Due to its large wingspan, four engines, low capacity and general inferiority to the larger and more improved A340-300, the −200 proved very unpopular with mainstream airlines. Only 28 A340-200s were produced.




A340-300  
The A340-300 flies 295 passengers in a typical three-class cabin layout over 6,700nm (12,400 km). This is the initial version, having flown on 25 October 1991, and it entered service in March 1993. It is powered by four CFMI CFM56-5C engines, and has three 4-wheel bogies for the main landing gear. A total of 218 -300s were delivered. As of July 2018, there were 96 Airbus A340-300s in airline service.  
A340-300E
 This variant has an increased MTOW of up to 275 tonnes (606,000 lb) and is powered by the more powerful 34,000 lbf (150 kN) thrust CFMI CFM56-5C4 engines. Typical range with 295 passengers is between 7,200 to 7,400 nautical miles (13,300 to 13,700 km). The largest operator of this type is Lufthansa, who has operated a fleet of 30 aircraft. 
A340-300 Enhanced
The A340-300 Enhanced is the latest version of this model. It received newer CFM56-5C4/P engines and improved avionics and fly-by-wire systems developed for the A340-500 and −600.  



A340-500  
Slightly longer than the −300, the −500 has a larger wing, larger Rolls-Royce Trent 500 turbofans, it was introduced in 2003. When the A340-500 was introduced, it was the world's longest-range commercial airliner. It can fly 313 passengers in a three-class cabin layout over 16020 km (8650 nm). Compared with the A340-300, the −500 features a 4.3-metre (14.1 ft) fuselage stretch, an enlarged wing, a significant increase in fuel capacity, slightly higher cruising speed, a larger horizontal stabilizer and a larger vertical tailplane. The centerline main landing gear was changed to a four-wheel bogie to support the additional weight. The A340-500 is powered by four 240 kN (54,000 lbf) thrust Rolls-Royce Trent 553 turbofans. Like the A340-200, a shortened derivative of the −300, the −500 was unpopular. As of August 2022, there are no longer any commercial A340-500 routes. However, Azerbaijan Airlines later put both of its aircraft back in service later in 2022, but removed them from service as of January 2023. 
A340-500IGW
The A340-500IGW (Increased Gross Weight) version has a range of 17,000 km (9,200 nmi) and a MTOW of 380 t (840,000 lb) and first flew on 13 October 2006. It uses the strengthened structure and enlarged fuel capacity of the A340-600. The A340-500IGW is powered by four 250 kN (56,000 lbf) thrust Rolls-Royce Trent 556 turbofans.  



A340-600  
The A340-600 is capable of carrying 379 passengers in a three-class cabin layout for 13,900 km (7,500 nmi). The first flight was made on 23 April 2001. Virgin Atlantic began commercial services in August 2002. The A340-600 is 12 m (39 ft 4.4 in) longer than a −300, and has two emergency exit doors added over the wings. It held the record for the world's longest commercial aircraft until the first flight of the Boeing 747-8 in February 2010. The A340-600 is powered by four 250 kN (56,000 lbf) thrust Rolls-Royce Trent 556 turbofans. As with the −500, it has a four-wheel undercarriage bogie on the fuselage centre-line to cope with the increased MTOW along with the enlarged wing and rear empennage.
A340-600HGW
The A340-600HGW (High Gross Weight) version first flew on 18 November 2005 and was certified on 14 April 2006. It has an MTOW of 380 t (840,000 lb) and a range of up to 14,630 km (7,900 nmi), made possible by strengthened structure, increased fuel capacity, more powerful engines and new manufacturing techniques. The A340-600HGW is powered by four 61,900 lbf (275 kN) thrust Rolls-Royce Trent 560 turbofans. 