Lufthansa Parked Every A340 in the Desert. Then It Needed Them Back.

Name: Lufthansa Parked Every A340 in the Desert. Then It Needed Them Back.
Uploaded: 2026-11-05T09:00:12-08:00
Duration: 10 min 29 s
Description: The full history of the Airbus A340: the engine Airbus lost two months before launch, the 777 and the rule change that made four engines obsolete, the longest airliner and the longest flight in the world, $147 oil, two close calls with nobody killed, the desert, the comeback, and the $15 billion delay that kept Lufthansa's last A340-600s flying until October 2026.

10 min 29 s · published November 5, 2026 · Watch on YouTube

In 2020 Lufthansa parked every A340-600 it still had in the Spanish desert and called them finished. Ten came back, and the last one flew into Frankfurt on October 19, 2026. This is the full story of the four-engine jet that wouldn't retire, with the documentary at the top.

Written and maintained by Jacob McEwen, M.S. Electrical Engineering·Last updated 2026-11-05

Chapters

0:00 Parked, then needed back
0:18 Why four engines?
1:24 The engine that disappeared
2:35 The 777 changes the rules
3:43 The longest airliner in the world
4:52 $147 oil
5:55 Two close calls
7:06 Parked in the desert
8:05 Why they couldn't retire it
9:28 Where to fly one now

Read the full story

The written version, with photos and every source: The four-engine jet Lufthansa couldn't retire: the story of the A340

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