Which Airlines Are Still Flying the A340-600?

The days of four-engine widebody aircraft for long-haul seem to be mostly a thing of the past. Today only the Airbus A380 and surviving Boeing 747s fly the flag for this.

However, the Airbus A340, which was a popular type for long-haul travel through the 1990s and early 2000s, is still flying in a few places.

The largest variant, the A340-600, first flew in 2001. Airlines which used it extensively include Iberia, Qatar Airways and Virgin Atlantic.

Today, the following airlines still fly the type:

European Cargo

Photo (c) Mark Murdock

During the Covid-19 pandemic, European Cargo acquired a number of former Virgin Atlantic A340-600s and converted them to carry freight. At the time PPE deliveries were common, but now this has expanded to include different cargoes. The airline is based at Bournemouth in the UK.

Lufthansa

Despite many major airlines moving on from the A340, German national carrier Lufthansa has kept its fleet flying and even reactivated stored examples.

It flies both the A340-300 and -600 from its hub in Frankfurt.

ConViasa

Photo (c) Anna Zvereva

Venezuelan national carrier ConViasa has three A340-600s in its fleet, which are believed to be leased from Mahan Air.

It uses on long-haul links from Caracas to some of its destinations in Russia and Iran.

Mahan Air

N509FZ, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

A number of A340s have found their way to Iran where they fly long-haul links with Mahan Air.

The airline has the A340-200, -300 and -600 on strength, and these can often be seen flying between Tehran and places like China and Istanbul.

Title image: Copyright Dmitri Popov, aircraft.photography.

Did you ever fly on an A340-600? Which airline? Leave a comment below.