Swiss has just singed an order for a tenth B777-300ER with its delivery following in April 2018. This aircraft will be replacing one of its 6 A340 it has not yet planned to replace with B777s, leaving 5 A340-300E which will be getting a new interior, similar to what the B77W offers. The new interior will be seating 8 First class passengers, 47 Business Class and 168 in Economy Class with a total of 223 seats, six more (4 in economy and 2 in Business) than the current seat layout. The remaining A340 will also offer Wifi and an updated entertainment system. The reconfiguration and cabin update is to take place in 2018Those A340 will be flying on long haul routes with low passenger demand. It is not yet clear what Swiss will be doing with the A340 it’s replacing, but it’ll be probably given to Edelweiss Air, boosting the Edelweiss Air fleet of A340s to 4.
So everybody who loves the A340 can be happy, because we will see the Swiss and Edelweiss A343 flying for several years to come.
Read more about fleet development here: SWISS, Edelweiss Air and Helvetic fleet development