The Airbus A340 was a relatively popular single deck quadjet with 380 built by the European manufacturer between 1991 and 2011. The current circumstances have led to many being withdrawn from service, although a few key airlines maintain operations. With this in mind, Simple Flying wondered, how much does an Airbus A340 cost in 2021?

A couple of weeks ago, Simple Flying reported that the newest Airbus A380 was worth around $110 million, down 75% from a 2018 list price of $445.6 million. But that is for a brand new aircraft. The youngest Airbus A340s are over a decade old, meaning that their worth has decreased significantly. Let us take a look!

The highest value A340

ch-aviation.com works with Collateral Verifications LLC to display the market value of aircraft. Unfortunately, data is not available for every aircraft, although 67 of the 380 jets built do have an estimated market value listed. Of these, the most valuable is registered as EC-NFQ.

EC-NFQ is an 11.83-year-old Airbus A340-600. Registered initially as A6-EHL, the jet took its first flight on August 6th, 2009, and was delivered to Etihad Airways shortly after, on September 23rd, 2009. The plane flew for Etihad for eight years, coming out of service on September 21st, 2017.

Airbus A340, Value, 2021
Plus Ultra operates the highest value Airbus A340. Photo: Pedro Aragão via Wikimedia

Data shows that up until March 31st, 2018, the plane had racked up 39,244 hours across 5,069 flight cycles. The jet is listed with a current market value of $6.52 million. This compares to a list price for the A340-600 of $275.4 million in 2011.

Today the aircraft is owned by European Aviation. Plus Ultra Lineas Aereas utilities the aircraft under an operating lease, taking the plane on January 21st last year, with the lease estimated to run until 2025. On April 22nd, 2021, the aircraft was ferried back to Abu Dhabi from Frankfurt Hahn Airport for maintenance.

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Cheaper aircraft are available

The three cheapest of the aircraft listed with a market value are all located in Iran. Iran Aseman Airlines' 29.35-year-old A340-300 registered as EP-APA is listed as being worth $1.13 million.

The plane was an Airbus test aircraft, taking its first flight in February 1992. It was the second A340 to be built. Virgin Atlantic then flew the aircraft between 1997 and 2011. Recently Virgin Atlantic also took delivery of an Airbus A350 that had been used for testing.

Airbus A340, Value, 2021
One of Virgin Atlantic's former A340s (not pictured) is the lowest value jet. Photo: Vincenzo Pace - Simple Flying

Two of Mahan Air's A340s are given the second and third lowest values. EP-MMA is listed as an active 27.75-year-old A340-300, with a value of $1.24 million. Meanwhile, EP-MMB is listed as a stored 26.51-year-old A340-300, with a value of $1.36 million.

Both aircraft were initially delivered to Lufthansa, who still operates their sister aircraft, D-AIGL. This is listed as the fourth least valuable A340 at 25.18 years old. The A340-300 took its first flight on April 3rd, 1996, before being delivered to Lufthansa on May 10th.

The plane has 279 seats across three classes and is owned by the German flag carrier. The aircraft is in active service, flying from San Jose to Frankfurt earlier today. ch-aviation.com lists it as worth $1.87 million.

How much do you think an Airbus A340 is worth in 2021? Let us know what you think and why in the comments below!