Lufthansa has ended scheduled passenger operations with the Airbus A340-600 after 23 years, following the arrival of flight LH419 from Washington Dulles in Frankfurt. Aircraft D-AIHW carried 267 passengers and 15 crew members on the final service, which lasted approximately eight hours and five minutes. Francesco Sciortino, a member of the Lufthansa Airlines executive board and Frankfurt hub manager, commanded the flight.
Lufthansa accepted its first A340-600, D-AIHB, on 25 November 2003. The airline retained four aircraft for the final phase of operations, primarily deploying them on Frankfurt services to Washington Dulles and New York JFK during the 2026 summer schedule.
The type remained in service longer than planned as Lufthansa required additional widebody capacity while deliveries of newer aircraft, including the Boeing 787-9 and 777-9, were delayed. Lufthansa was the last European scheduled airline to operate the A340-600.
The retirement applies to scheduled passenger flying; ferry and other non-scheduled flights could still take place as the remaining aircraft leave the active fleet. The shorter Airbus A340-300 remains in scheduled service with Lufthansa.