Airbus A330-300
The original — a stretched A300-600 fuselage on the A340's wing · First flight 1992 · In service 1994
The A330-300 was the first member of the family. Airbus launched it alongside the four-engined A340 in June 1987, and the two share the same wing and a common glass cockpit; the A330-300 itself is built on a stretched version of the A300-600 fuselage. It flew for the first time on 2 November 1992 and entered service with the French domestic carrier Air Inter in January 1994.
At 63.66 m it is the longest A330, typically seating around 300 passengers in two classes, with an exit limit of 440. Customers could choose between three engine makers — General Electric CF6-80E1, Pratt & Whitney PW4000 and Rolls-Royce Trent 700 — and later weight upgrades raised its maximum take-off weight from 212 t to 242 t, stretching the range to about 11,750 km.
That mix of capacity and twin-engine economics made it a staple on busy regional long-haul and high-density routes, flown by carriers such as Cathay Pacific, Delta, KLM, Swiss and Aer Lingus.
