Specifications
- Manufacturer
- Airbus
- ICAO / IATA code
- A333 / 333
- First flight
- 2 November 1992
- Entered service
- 17 January 1994, with Air Inter
- Status
- Out of production
- Engines
- 2 × Rolls-Royce Trent 700, GE CF6-80E1 or Pratt & Whitney PW4000
- Range
- 11,750 km (6,344 nmi)
- Cruise speed
- Mach 0.86
- Length
- 63.66 m
- Wingspan
- 60.3 m
- Height
- 16.79 m
- Cabin width
- 5.26 m
- Max take-off weight
- 242 t
Seats and cabin layout
Airbus quotes 250–290 seats in a typical 3-class layout. The type certificate allows at most 440 passengers — the exit limit, which no airline with a premium cabin comes near.
Airbus’s reference layout
Drawn by Orbit from the figures in Airbus A330 Aircraft Characteristics – Airport and Maintenance Planning (Dec 2025), §2-4-1 Interior Arrangements – Plan View, Typical Configuration, and §2-5-0 Cross Section. Typical, not any airline’s seat map — your flight may differ. Nose on the left.
- Business
- Economy
What the biggest operators fit
| Airline | Cabins | Seats |
|---|---|---|
| Cathay Pacific | 39 business · 21 premium economy · 191 economy | 251 |
| Delta Air Lines | 34 business · 21 premium economy · 227 economy | 282 |
From each airline’s own seat or fleet page. Airlines often fly more than one version of a type; this is the one they publish.
Which airlines fly the A330-300
The largest fleets of this variant. Counts move as aircraft are delivered and retired, so each carries the date it describes.
Safety record
Every fatal accident and hull loss involving the A330-300, with the investigators' report where one is published. The complete record, minor incidents included, is kept by the Aviation Safety Network.
· Toulouse-Blagnac Airport, France
Airbus Industrie flight Test flight
During a certification test of take-off with a simulated engine failure, the autopilot pitched the aircraft up to a steep attitude, it lost speed and control and crashed, killing all seven on board.
7 killed · aircraft written off · no official report published · Wikipedia ↗
· Suvarnabhumi Airport, Bangkok, Thailand
Thai Airways International flight TG679
After landing, a fractured right main landing gear bogie beam made the aircraft veer off the runway, collapsing the nose gear; 14 occupants had minor injuries and the aircraft was written off.
No fatalities · aircraft written off · no official report published · Wikipedia ↗
· Tribhuvan International Airport, Kathmandu, Nepal
Turkish Airlines flight TK726
The crew continued an approach in fog below minimums, touched down left of the centreline and ran onto soft ground, collapsing the nose gear; no one was killed.
No fatalities · aircraft written off · Accident Investigation Commission (Nepal) report ↗
· Beijing Capital International Airport, China
Air China flight CA183
A fire broke out while passengers were boarding at the gate; all occupants were evacuated without injury and the aircraft was written off.
No fatalities · aircraft written off · AIB (China) report ↗
· Mactan-Cebu International Airport, Philippines
Korean Air flight KE631
On a second approach in heavy rain the aircraft touched down short of the runway, damaging its right main landing gear and most of its deceleration systems, and then overran the runway end; everyone on board survived.
No fatalities · aircraft written off · AAIIB (Philippines) report ↗
· Khartoum International Airport, Sudan
Saudia
The aircraft was destroyed on the ground during fighting at Khartoum airport at the start of the Sudanese conflict.
No fatalities · aircraft written off · no official report published · Wikipedia ↗
Asked and answered
How many seats does the Airbus A330-300 have?
Airbus quotes 250 to 290 seats in a typical three-class layout, and the type is certified for up to 440 passengers. Airline layouts vary widely, from about 250 seats at Cathay Pacific to around 280 at Delta.
Which airlines fly the A330-300?
The largest operators include Cathay Pacific, Turkish Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Air China and China Eastern Airlines. Many other carriers in Asia, Europe and the Middle East also fly it.
Is the A330-300 safe?
No passenger flight of the A330-300 has ended in a fatal accident. Its only fatal crash was a 1994 Airbus test flight that killed seven crew and engineers; the other hull losses listed above caused no deaths.
How far can an A330-300 fly?
Airbus quotes a range of up to 11,750 km (6,350 nautical miles), enough for many long-haul routes. Actual range on a given flight depends on payload, weather and fuel reserves.
Every flight you’ve taken, on one globe.
Orbit is a flight logbook. Add the airports and the date, and it works out the distance, the hours, the countries and the milestones.