The Airbus A340-500 is arguably one of
the best looking airliners ever designed. It’s an ultra-long range version
of Airbus’ most popular quad-jet, and was launched at the 1997 Paris
Airshow along with the larger A340-600. Unfortunately, it didn’t sell terribly
well, and only 34 airframes were ever built. However, some might not know that two of those
actually flew with Canada’s flag carrier. Air Canada operated the A340-500 for just
3 short years, between 2004 and 2007. Now, that timeframe alone is a little bit
unusual for an airline like Air Canada, who tends to fly their planes
for 20 or even 30 years . So, why did Air Canada fly the A340-500,
and for such a short period of time? Well, according to Air Canada, the
story starts back in the 1990s, as it became time to consider a replacement
for their original 747 classics. Ultimately, it was decided to purchase a mix
of Airbus A330s and A340s to replace the 747s, with the idea that the A340s would be a more
appropriate size for many of Air Canada’s longer international routes. The A330s on the other hand, would be best suited to
shorter transatlantic flights to Western Europe, something they still do today. Air Canada’s first A340, a smaller
-300 model, was delivered in 1995, while the first A330s joined the fleet in 1999. In 1997, Air Canada became the launch
customer for the A340-500, when they ordered two of the type for their ultra-long range
capabilities, along with 3 of the larger A340-600. Those A340-600s though, would never materialize,
and the order was deferred on more than one occasion. Eventually, they were cancelled outright
in 2008, 10 years after the order was placed.
Nevertheless, the A340-500s did join the
fleet, but only after production delays and Air Canada’s financial troubles in
2003 caused deliveries to be pushed back. Because of that, Emirates became the
A340-500 launch customer instead. Air Canada’s two aircraft would eventually
be delivered in June and July of 2004, and were assigned fin numbers 951 and 952. They were each configured with
267 seats in a two-class layout, with 42 seats in ‘Executive First’
or Business Class as it’s known now, and 225 seats in ‘Hospitality
Service’ or Economy Class. The first revenue flight for the A340-500 took
place on July 3rd, 2004, between Montreal and Toronto. As the 747-400 flew its final flight in
October that year, the A340-500s took over its longer international services. The two aircraft
would primarily fly nonstop between Toronto and Hong Kong, as well as Toronto-Shanghai
and Toronto-Delhi, among other routes. According to a former Air Canada pilot with
18 years of experience flying Airbus aircraft, The A340-500 could fly for over 16
hours with a full passenger load, and with four engines, it was exempt
from the restrictions of ETOPS. However, those four engines would actually
prove to be a bit of a disadvantage, as it meant higher maintenance expenses,
and increased fuel consumption. So, in November of 2005, Air Canada ordered
18 Boeing 777s, with options for a further 18. This initial order consisted of 8
777-300ERs and 6 of the smaller 777-200LR, with the other 4 777 models to
be determined at a later date. With a lower operating cost as compared to the
A340, the 777s were the perfect replacement at the time. The -200LR would take over these
longer distance routes like Toronto to Hong Kong, and do so at a 12 percent lower seat-mile cost. According to a 2019 Air Canada
polar operations presentation, the A340s could be somewhat susceptible
to 'fuel freeze' issues on the polar routes. With the introduction of the 777s, the different
fuel tank layout made that much less of a concern, and having more than 2 aircraft also
allowed for much more flexibility. The first 777-300ERs were delivered
to Air Canada in early 2007, and the -200LRs began joining
the fleet later that summer. As the 777s were introduced to
Air Canada’s long haul network, including the Toronto to Hong Kong route in August
of 2007, the end was in sight for the A340s. So, in November 2007, the A340-500s
were officially retired from the fleet. As they were still owned by
Air Canada, fin 951 and 952 were then leased to TAM Airlines of Brazil,
where they continued to fly until 2011. The two aircraft would remain on Air
Canada’s balance sheet until they were, and I quote, ‘disposed of’ in 2014. Fin 951 was scrapped in Rio De Janeiro in 2015,
while fin 952 has been stored in Spain since 2018. With Air Canada’s final Airbus
A340-300 flight on November 20, 2008, this era of four-engined, long
haul airliners came to a close. Ultimately, the A340-500 was not as appealing
to airlines as Airbus had hoped for, and this 3 year period with Air
Canada seemed to prove that. For what it was though, it served its purpose
at the airline until the 777s came along, and to this day, it remains a
unique part of Air Canada’s history. Thank you very much for watching this
video about Air Canada’s Airbus A340-500! A special thank you once again to my friend Mark
Brandon for those A340-500 clips, and to Chris Sands for letting me use those fantastic pictures.
I had also reached out to Air Canada for some more information regarding the plane, and they were
very helpful, so a big thank you to them as well! Otherwise though, if you enjoyed
the video, please do leave a like, subscribe, consider becoming a channel
member, and I will see you next time.
