A330-300

A330
An Airbus A330-300, the first and most common variant, of Turkish Airlines, the largest A330 operator
Role	Wide-body jet airliner
National origin	Multi-national
Manufacturer	Airbus
First flight	2 November 1992
Introduction	17 January 1994 with Air Inter
Status	In service
Primary users	Turkish Airlines Air China China Eastern Airlines
Produced	1992–present
Number built	1,390 as of 31 December 2017[update]
Program cost	$3.5 Billion (with A340, 2001 dollars)
Unit cost	A330-200: US$238.5M (2018) A330-300: US$264.2M (2018) A330-200F: US$241.7M (2018)
Developed from	Airbus A300
Variants	Airbus A330 MRTT EADS/Northrop Grumman KC-45
Developed into	Airbus A330neo Airbus Beluga XL

The Airbus A330 is a medium- to long-range wide-body twin-engine jet airliner made by Airbus. Versions of the A330 have a range of 5,000 to 13,430 kilometres (2,700 to 7,250 nmi; 3,110 to 8,350 mi) and can accommodate up to 335 passengers in a two-class layout or carry 70 tonnes (154,000 lb) of cargo.

The A330's origin dates to the mid-1970s as one of several conceived derivatives of Airbus's first airliner, the A300. The A330 was developed in parallel with the four-engine A340, which shared many common airframe components but differed in number of engines. Both airliners incorporated fly-by-wire flight control technology, first introduced on an Airbus aircraft with the A320, as well as the A320's six-display glass cockpit. In June 1987, after receiving orders from various customers, Airbus launched the A330 and A340. The A330 was Airbus's first airliner that offered a choice of three engine types: General Electric CF6, Pratt & Whitney PW4000, and Rolls-Royce Trent 700.

The A330-300, the first variant, took its maiden flight in November 1992 and entered passenger service with Air Inter in January 1994. Airbus followed up with the slightly shorter A330-200 variant in 1998. Subsequently-developed A330 variants include a dedicated freighter, the A330-200F, a military tanker, the A330 MRTT, and a corporate jet, ACJ330. The A330 MRTT formed the basis of the proposed KC-45, entered into the US Air Force's KC-X competition in conjunction with Northrop Grumman, where after an initial win, on appeal lost to Boeing's tanker.