Buenos Aires, Argentina - The only Airbus A340 of Aerolineas Argentinas with registration FV-LPU made its last commercial flight under the South American carrier's colors on Feb. 16.
The Airbus A340-300 took off from Madrid-Barajas airport on Feb. 16 for its last flight to Buenos Aires-Ezeiza airport. The four-engined jet joined Aerolineas Argentinas in June 1999 and served as a workhorse on the airline's ultra-long-haul routes.
It was mainly deployed on intercontinental routes of the Argentina's flag carrier, notably for non-stop flights to Auckland and Sydney. The aircraft is configured to accommodate 32 passengers in Business class and 248 in Economy, 280 seats in total.
The airline had also operated Boeing 747s on its long-haul routes along with its Airbus A340s. In 2012, the SkyTeam member carrier was operating four A340-200 and seven A340-300s. With the arrival of the Airbus A330s, the South American operator began to phase out its Boeing 747s and A340s. Aerolineas Argentinas' current long-haul fleet comprises 10 A330-200 jets.
Airline's A330-200s are fitted with 24 seats in Business Class and 248 in Economy Class. The rest of its fleet includes eight Boeing 737-700, 31 737-800 and five of the thirteen 737 MAX 8 expected.