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Airbus A330-300 (A330-343)

A330-1206Active

RegistrationGBG-VLUV

Aircraft existence documentedby a freely licensed photograph

OperatorVirgin Atlantic

2operators

4incidents

0accidents

0logbook years

12photos

Airbus A330-300 (A330-343) built in 2011 in Toulouse. Operates for Virgin Atlantic. Previously flew for China Airlines.

NewNearly newYoungMatureAgingOld

Young · 15 years · ≈ 64,500 flight hours (approx.)

Vuelopedia is a work in progress: it currently holds about 30% of the information we expect to have by the third quarter of 2027. Although we use only official, highly reliable sources, some aircraft data and history may still contain errors or inaccuracies. We work hard to clear every anomaly from the records using specialized verification tools.

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Technical data

ManufacturerAirbus

Engines2× 2 x RR Trent 772B-60

PropulsionTurbofan

Seats264 (C31 · W48 · Y185)

First flight2011

Built inToulouse, Francia

Country of registrationReino Unido

Owner[Hidden]

MSN1206

Hex / ICAO 24-bit40641D

VerificationExistence documented by a freely licensed photograph by John Taggart from Sunbury on Thames, Middlesex showing this registration on a A330-343

The model · Airbus A330

Figures for the A330-300 variant, the most representative of the family · it is 61% the length of a football pitch

Length63.7 m209 ft

Wingspan60.3 m198 ft

Height16.8 m55 ft

Range11,760 km6,350 NMWith a typical passenger load

Cruise speed871 km/h470 ktMach 0.82

Service ceiling12,634 m41,450 ftIt flies above Everest (1.4 times its height)

Maximum take-off weight242,000 kg533,518 lb

Maximum payload112,600 kg248,240 lbIts 277 passengers with baggage would weigh about 27.7 t; the rest is fuel and cargo

Typical capacity277 passengersUp to 440 in a high-density layout

Endurance13 h 30 minAt cruise speed, non-stop

With its 11,760 km range, from Taoyuan it could fly non-stop as far as:

JNBJohannesburg11,480 km LAXLos Angeles10,922 km MADMadrid10,761 km CDGParis (Roissy-en-France, Val-d'Oise)9,786 kmLHRLondon9,783 km

Beyond its rangeORDChicago11,980 km

The type first flew in 1992 (34 years ago) · About 1,800 units built · Still in production

Figures for the type, not for this particular aircraft: each variant and each configuration changes something. They are shown in both systems used in aviation.

The full story of the Airbus A330 Compare this aircraft

Seating layout

31Business

48Premium

185Economy

264 seats in total

Airports

Airports of the airlines that have operated it

2011–2012China Airlines network of its widebody aircraft

Base

TPETaoyuan

Main destinations

KHHKaohsiung (Xiaogang)BKKBangkok HKGHong Kong AKLAuckland BNEBrisbane CGKJakarta DELNew Delhi HNLHonolulu, Oahu LAXLos Angeles SYDSydney (Mascot)TSATaipei (Songshan)

2012–2026Virgin Atlantic network of its widebody aircraft

Base

LHRLondon

Main destinations

LGWLondon ATLAtlanta MANManchester, Greater Manchester MCOOrlando UVFVieux Fort ANUOsbourn BGIBridgetown LASLas Vegas LAXLos Angeles PEKBeijing SFOSan Francisco

Flight logbook

Under research

Aircraft chronology

2011

Built

Assembled by Airbus in Toulouse, France.

Mar 16, 2011

Delivered to China Airlines

Delivered to China Airlines as B-18391.

Dec 2, 2012

Transferred to Virgin Atlantic

Transferred to Virgin Atlantic.

Apr 27, 2016

Incident

On April 27, 2016, the Airbus A330-343 aircraft (registration G-VLUV), operated by Virgin Atlantic, was involved in an incident. Source: Virgin Atlantic.

Source: Virgin Atlantic

Oct 2, 2017

Incident at Saint Lucia

On October 2, 2017, the Airbus A330-343 aircraft (registration G-VLUV), operated by Virgin Atlantic, was involved in an incident at Saint Lucia. Source: Virgin Atlantic.

Source: Virgin Atlantic

Aug 10, 2018

Incident

On August 10, 2018, the Airbus A330-343 aircraft (registration G-VLUV), operated by Virgin Atlantic, was involved in an incident. Source: Virgin Atlantic.

Source: Virgin Atlantic

May 2020

Placed in storage

In May 2020, the A330-343 aircraft (registration G-VLUV), operated by Virgin Atlantic, was placed in storage. Source: Virgin Atlantic.

Source: Virgin Atlantic

May 2020

Parked due to COVID-19

In May 2020, the A330-343 aircraft (registration G-VLUV), operated by Virgin Atlantic, was parked. Source: Virgin Atlantic.

What happened

The COVID-19 pandemic brought much of world aviation to a halt in 2020: as demand collapsed, thousands of aircraft sat parked for weeks or months. The extent and the dates varied a great deal from country to country and from airline to airline. This record is based on evidence FOR THIS AIRCRAFT (documented parking and gaps in its flight logbook). Source: Virgin Atlantic.

Source: Virgin Atlantic

Dec 17, 2023

Incident at St. Lucia

On December 17, 2023, the Airbus A330-343 aircraft (registration G-VLUV), operated by Virgin Atlantic, was involved in an incident at St. Lucia. Source: Virgin Atlantic.

Source: Virgin Atlantic

Operators

2011-03-16

China Airlines

Registration B-18391 · Lessor: Virgin Atlantic

2012-12-02

Virgin Atlantic

Registration G-VLUV

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Gallery

External photographs under a Creative Commons license. Click to enlarge in a new tab.

Cite

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This page was last updated on October 13, 2026

APA

Vuelopedia. (2026, October 13). Airbus A330-300 (A330-343) · G-VLUV · Virgin Atlantic. Retrieved October 16, 2026, from https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/A330-1206

MLA

“Airbus A330-300 (A330-343) · G-VLUV · Virgin Atlantic.” Vuelopedia, Fundación Poderia, 13 Oct. 2026, vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/A330-1206. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Chicago

Vuelopedia. “Airbus A330-300 (A330-343) · G-VLUV · Virgin Atlantic.” Fundación Poderia. Last modified October 13, 2026. https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/A330-1206.

Harvard

Vuelopedia (2026) Airbus A330-300 (A330-343) · G-VLUV · Virgin Atlantic. Available at: https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/A330-1206 (Accessed: 16 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{vuelopedia_en_aircraft_a330_1206,
  author       = {{Vuelopedia}},
  title        = {{Airbus A330-300 (A330-343) · G-VLUV · Virgin Atlantic}},
  publisher    = {Fundación Poderia},
  year         = {2026},
  date         = {2026-10-13},
  url          = {https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/A330-1206},
  howpublished = {\url{https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/A330-1206}},
  urldate      = {2026-10-16},
  note         = {Accessed 2026-10-16}
}

Wikipedia

{{cite web |url=https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/A330-1206 |title=Airbus A330-300 (A330-343) · G-VLUV · Virgin Atlantic |website=Vuelopedia |publisher=Fundación Poderia |date=2026-10-13 |access-date=2026-10-16 |language=en}}