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Lufthansa maintains its aging Airbus A340 fleet amid replacement delays

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Lufthansa maintains its aging Airbus A340 fleet amid replacement delays
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Lufthansa Airbus A340 | Wikimedia

Lufthansa continues to operate its Airbus A340 fleet despite the global trend of airlines retiring older aircraft models. The German airline is known for flying rare jets, including the Airbus A380, Boeing 747-400, and 747-8, alongside its 25 Airbus A340s.

Lufthansa was the first operator of the Airbus A340 when it debuted in 1993. The airline currently flies 17 out of the original 30 A340-300s it acquired and eight out of the 24 ordered A340-600s. Despite plans to retire these aircraft by 2028 as part of a broader fleet modernization strategy, Lufthansa still relies on them due to delays in acquiring new planes.

"Lufthansa plans to retire the Airbus A340 fleet by 2028," reported Ch-aviation last year. Newer aircraft like Lufthansa's Dreamliners face certification issues with their Allegris seats, while supply chain problems have delayed deliveries of other models such as the A350 and Boeing's 777-9.

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The financial implications also play a role in maintaining the older fleet. The costs associated with fuel efficiency are balanced against capital costs; new planes are expensive investments expected to be used for many years. Lufthansa's older A340s are fully paid off, allowing flexibility in managing economic downturns without incurring additional expenses from newer aircraft.

Historically, Lufthansa chose the Airbus A340 over competitors like Boeing's offerings due to cost savings through parts and staff commonality with other Airbus models. Although ETOPS allowed twinjets longer flights over open water later on, initially there were significant restrictions which made quadjets like the A340 advantageous for certain routes.

Today, Lufthansa operates two variants of the A340 from Frankfurt: both are utilized based on demand and seating configurations that cater to business travel needs. The United States remains a key destination for these flights along with several locations across Asia and Africa.

As these aging quadjets near retirement, Lufthansa will gradually replace them with more modern aircraft such as different variants of the Airbus A350 and Boeing Dreamliner models. Until then, travelers have until at least 2028 to experience flying on one of aviation history’s unique airliners.

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