Airbus A340-600

02 Aug 2026 · © AviatorShots81

Virgin Atlantic Airbus A340-600 G-VFIZ rotates for departure—an iconic long-haul four-engine airliner in classic livery.

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Comments (1)

Siliconserver · 02 Aug 2026

Awesome! ✈️

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Aircraft

A340-600 A346

Virgin Atlantic standard livery

G-VFIZ

Registration

Airline

Virgin Atlantic

VIR / VS

Manufacturer

Airbus

Gear

SONY ILCE-6000 FE 70-200mm F4 G OSS

Achievements

Rare Bird, Vintage Voyager, Runway Royalty, Ultra-Long-Haul, Airbus Aficionado

5 badges earned

Photo grade

Silver

Score: 87.0

Great 3/4 climb-out angle and full reg visible; overcast sky flattens colors slightly but lovely Virgin Atlantic livery pops.

Location

London Heathrow Airport

LHR/EGLL

51.4707, -0.4599

Open map

London Heathrow Airport LHR

Airport

Insights

Aviation History

The Airbus A340-600 was one of the longest passenger aircraft in the world and flagship for several carriers, including Virgin Atlantic.

Fleet Rarity

One of only 24 A340-600s built; Virgin Atlantic retired its A340s in 2020, making this model increasingly rare to see in airline colors.

Record Flights

Notable for operating ultra-long-haul services such as London-Hong Kong, among the world\'s longest non-stop flights at the time.

Safety & Events

Virgin Atlantic A340-600s had reliable service records, though one - not this frame - was destroyed during engine run-up testing.

Future Outlook

Retired from Virgin Atlantic fleet; most A340-600s are now stored or scrapped due to efficiency concerns.

Specifications

Rolls-Royce Trent 556

Engine

63.45 m

Wingspan

75.36 m

Length

14,450 km

Range

903 km/h

Speed

326 passengers (typical 3-class config)

Capacity

368,000 kg

MTOW

17.29 m

Height

249 kN (56,000 lbf)

Thrust

QC/1 (departure), QC/0.5 (arrival) - ICAO Chapter 4 compliant

Noise