--- title: "Airbus A330-300: seats, specs, airlines and safety record · Orbit" description: "Airbus A330-300 — 250–290 seats typically, 11,750 km range. Seat layout, engines, who flies it (Cathay Pacific, Turkish Airlines, Delta Air Lines) and its safety record, with sources." url: https://orbitflights.app/aircraft/airbus-a330-300 --- Airbus # Airbus A330-300 The A330-300 is the longer of the two original A330 versions, a twin-engine, twin-aisle jet used on both regional trunk routes and long-haul flights. It typically seats 250 to 290 passengers in three classes, with economy usually eight abreast. It has been largely succeeded by the re-engined A330-900, but hundreds remain in airline service. **Typical seats** 250–290 **Range** 11,750 km **First flight** November 1992 **In service since** January 1994 _\[Image: Cathay Pacific Airbus A330-300 B-LBI on final approach to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport\]_ Cathay Pacific Airbus A330-300 B-LBI on final approach to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport. Photo: [4300streetcar / Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cathay%5FPacific%5FAirbus%5FA330-300%5FB-LBI%5Fon%5Ffinal%5Fapproach%5Fto%5FTaoyuan%5FFebruary%5F2026.jpg), [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), resized. ## 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](https://www.aircraft.airbus.com/sites/g/files/jlcbta126/files/2025-12/AC%5FA330%5F20251201.pdf). 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](https://www.cathaypacific.com/cx/en%5FUS/flying-with-us/aircraft-and-fleet/airbus-a330/a330.html) | 39 business · 21 premium economy · 191 economy | 251 | | [Delta Air Lines](https://www.delta.com/us/en/aircraft/airbus/a330-300) | 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. - Cathay Pacific \~43 in the fleet, as of 1 December 2025 · [source](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cathay%5FPacific%5Ffleet) - Turkish Airlines \~37 in the fleet, as of 1 June 2026 · [source](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkish%5FAirlines%5Ffleet) - Delta Air Lines \~31 in the fleet, as of 1 July 2026 · [source](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delta%5FAir%5FLines%5Ffleet) - Air China \~28 in the fleet, as of 1 January 2026 · [source](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air%5FChina) - China Eastern Airlines \~26 in the fleet, as of 1 December 2025 · [source](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China%5FEastern%5FAirlines) ## 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](https://aviation-safety.net/asndb/type/A333). 1. 30 June 1994 · 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 ↗](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airbus%5FIndustrie%5FFlight%5F129) 2. 8 September 2013 · 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 ↗](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List%5Fof%5Faccidents%5Fand%5Fincidents%5Finvolving%5Fthe%5FAirbus%5FA330) 3. 4 March 2015 · 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 ↗](https://www.tourism.gov.np/files/publication%5Ffiles/TURKISH-AIRLINE-Final-Report-finalcopy%5F1514970621.pdf) 4. 27 August 2019 · 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 ↗](https://bea.aero/en/investigation-reports/notified-events/detail/accident-to-the-airbus-a330-registered-b-5958-operated-by-air-china-on-27-08-2019-at-beijing-investigation-led-by-aib---china/) 5. 23 October 2022 · 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 ↗](https://www.caap.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Accident-HL7525-Final-Report.pdf) 6. 15 April 2023 · 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 ↗](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List%5Fof%5Faccidents%5Fand%5Fincidents%5Finvolving%5Fthe%5FAirbus%5FA330) ## 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. ## Other aircraft - [Airbus A350-900 →](https://orbitflights.app/aircraft/airbus-a350-900) - [Airbus A380-800 →](https://orbitflights.app/aircraft/airbus-a380-800) - [Boeing 777-300ER →](https://orbitflights.app/aircraft/boeing-777-300er) - [All aircraft →](https://orbitflights.app/aircraft) ### Further reading - [The airport codes that make no sense](https://orbitflights.app/blog/airport-codes-that-make-no-sense) - [How flight radar actually works, and why your trail vanishes when you land](https://orbitflights.app/blog/how-flight-radar-works) - [Flight tracker or flight log — which one do you actually want?](https://orbitflights.app/blog/flight-tracker-or-flight-log) ## 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. [Download now](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.qwertybit.orbit) ## Where these facts come from - [Airbus — A330-300 facts and figures ↗](https://aircraft.airbus.com/en/aircraft/a330/a330-300) - [Airbus — A330 Aircraft Characteristics, Airport and Maintenance Planning (Dec 2025) ↗](https://www.aircraft.airbus.com/sites/g/files/jlcbta126/files/2025-12/AC%5FA330%5F20251201.pdf) - [EASA — TCDS A.004 Airbus A330, Issue 69 (Section 2: A330-300) ↗](https://www.easa.europa.eu/en/downloads/7518/en) - [Wikipedia — Airbus A330 (first flight, entry into service, launch operator) ↗](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airbus%5FA330) - [Wikipedia — List of accidents and incidents involving the Airbus A330 ↗](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List%5Fof%5Faccidents%5Fand%5Fincidents%5Finvolving%5Fthe%5FAirbus%5FA330) - [Wikidata — Airbus A330-300 (Q62274649) ↗](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q62274649) - [Wikipedia — List of aircraft type designators ↗](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List%5Fof%5Faircraft%5Ftype%5Fdesignators) - [Cathay Pacific — Airbus A330 ↗](https://www.cathaypacific.com/cx/en%5FUS/flying-with-us/aircraft-and-fleet/airbus-a330/a330.html) - [Delta — Airbus A330-300 seat maps and specs ↗](https://www.delta.com/us/en/aircraft/airbus/a330-300) - [Wikipedia — Cathay Pacific fleet ↗](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cathay%5FPacific%5Ffleet) - [Wikipedia — Turkish Airlines fleet ↗](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkish%5FAirlines%5Ffleet) - [Wikipedia — Delta Air Lines fleet ↗](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delta%5FAir%5FLines%5Ffleet) - [Wikipedia — Air China (fleet) ↗](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air%5FChina) - [Wikipedia — China Eastern Airlines (fleet) ↗](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China%5FEastern%5FAirlines) - [Wikipedia — Airbus Industrie Flight 129 ↗](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airbus%5FIndustrie%5FFlight%5F129) - [ch-aviation — Aer Lingus takes delivery of world's last new-build A330-300 ↗](https://www.ch-aviation.com/news/86961-aer-lingus-takes-delivery-of-worlds-last-new-build-a330-300) Checked on 6 October 2026. If something here is out of date, it is a bug. Airbus and the airlines named are trademarks of their owners; Orbit is not affiliated with any of them. --- Markdown copy of https://orbitflights.app/aircraft/airbus-a330-300 for language models and agents. Site index: https://orbitflights.app/llms.txt