{"schemaVersion":"1.0","airline":"Cathay Pacific","aircraft":"A340","links":{"human":"/aircraft/cathay-pacific-a340-seat-guide","agent":"/.agent/aircraft/cathay-pacific-a340-seat-guide","json":"/api/agent/aircraft/cathay-pacific-a340-seat-guide"},"verifiedData":{"provenance":{"dataset":"aircraft_specs.csv","publication":"aircraft-configurations.snapshot.json","externalSourceLinksMayBeMissing":true},"resolution":null,"configurations":[],"sharedAcrossConfigurations":null,"maps":[]},"estimatedLayouts":[],"passengerEvidence":{"status":"not_matched","reports":[],"consensus":null},"cabinAnalysis":{"status":"not_synthesized","recommendation":null},"editorial":{"url":"/aircraft/cathay-pacific-a340-seat-guide","role":"Broader aircraft context; not canonical configuration specifications.","seatRecommendations":{"scope":"guide_level_editorial","configurationVerified":false,"caveat":"Existing guide recommendations, not verified for the selected configuration. Confirm seat positions and availability with the airline.","bestSeats":{"status":"not_available","columns":[],"rows":[],"notes":[]},"seatsToAvoid":{"status":"not_available","columns":[],"rows":[],"notes":[]}},"title":"Cathay Pacific A340: Retired Since 2017 — What Replaced It (2026)","summary":"Cathay Pacific’s last A340 touched down in Hong Kong on March 26, 2017 — CX469 from Taipei, registration B-HXJ, slipping out of service without fanfare. After more than two decades, Cathay’s four-engine Airbus quietly became history. No A340 has flown for the airline since.","sections":[{"heading":"Two decades of four-engine Airbus flying","paragraphs":["Cathay Pacific operated A340s from the 1990s on a mix of regional routes and thinner long-haul destinations. The type was gradually displaced as more fuel-efficient twin-engine aircraft entered the fleet — four-engine economics became increasingly difficult to justify as ETOPS operations matured."]},{"heading":"What flies Cathay Pacific’s routes now","paragraphs":["The A350 family replaced the A340 on Cathay’s network. The A350-1000 is the current long-haul flagship.","Cathay Pacific A350-1000 seat guide · Cathay Pacific 777-300ER seat guide"]}],"faqs":[{"question":"Does Cathay Pacific still fly the A340?","answer":"No. Last flight March 26, 2017 (CX469, Taipei–Hong Kong, registration B-HXJ). Retired without any farewell ceremony."},{"question":"What replaced the Cathay Pacific A340?","answer":"The A350-1000 on long-haul routes; the 777-300ER and A350-900 on the broader network."},{"question":"Why did Cathay Pacific retire the A340?","answer":"Four-engine aircraft became uneconomical as twin-engine ETOPS flying matured. The A350 offered the same or better range with two engines and significantly lower fuel burn."}],"publishedAt":"2026-05-06T00:00:00.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-07-10T00:00:00.000Z","contentBasis":"Existing published editorial text; not independently verified configuration data."},"limitations":["Select and confirm the configuration with the airline; no live flight matching.","Unknown configuration status does not establish current fleet operation.","Do not substitute estimated layouts or editorial prose for verified seat geometry."]}