Lufthansa’s Final A346 Flight Marks the End of an Aviation Love Story

Study the questions and tasks

Work through the material below, or start the interactive practice above to complete an attempt. Try the exercises before opening any answer or transcript sections, then use them to review your work.

Practice level

C2. Try this level if you can follow the instructions and understand most of the language; choose an earlier level if you need more support.

Question formats

Single choice

How to approach this practice

Read the passage for its main idea, then return to the relevant sentence or paragraph for each question. Base answers on the passage.

1. Question 1 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What is the article’s central purpose?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. To compare Lufthansa’s routes with those of competing airlines
   2. To explain the aircraft’s appeal and the significance of its retirement
   3. To evaluate the safety record of four-engine aircraft
   4. To forecast the future prices of long-haul tickets
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   To explain the aircraft’s appeal and the significance of its retirement

   It explains the aircraft’s appeal while interpreting its retirement as an industry shift.

   Lufthansa is retiring its A346, bringing an unusual chapter in commercial aviation to a close.

2. Question 2 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What can be inferred about the A346’s appeal to enthusiasts?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. It depends mainly on exceptionally fast travel times
   2. It arises partly from recognizable design eccentricities
   3. It reflects passengers’ preference for minimal cabin space
   4. It is based primarily on the aircraft’s commercial profitability
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   It arises partly from recognizable design eccentricities

   Its unusual physical and interior features make flights especially memorable to admirers.

   Its unusual proportions and interior layout provide details that enthusiasts can recognize and remember, turning a routine flight into something more memorable.

3. Question 3 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What does “That arrangement” refer to in the second paragraph?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. The aircraft’s route, schedule, and efficiency
   2. The enthusiasts’ habit of recognizing aircraft details
   3. The aircraft’s distinctive physical and interior features
   4. The carrier’s decision to remove the model from service
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   The aircraft’s distinctive physical and interior features

   The phrase refers to the aircraft’s unusual combination of engines, length, and stair-accessed restrooms.

   That arrangement gives the aircraft a character rarely associated with modern air travel.

4. Question 4 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   How is the article organized overall?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. Chronologically, from invention through international expansion
   2. By contrasting passenger safety records across aircraft types
   3. From concrete characteristics toward wider significance
   4. By presenting opposing opinions from airline executives
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   From concrete characteristics toward wider significance

   It moves from distinctive features to broader operational and cultural implications.

   In this context, the A346’s departure is both a practical decision and a cultural moment for aviation enthusiasts.

5. Question 5 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   Why does the author mention that few carriers still fly the model?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. To establish that Lufthansa pioneered the aircraft’s design
   2. To explain why the retirement reduces opportunities to see it
   3. To show that the aircraft remains commercially dominant
   4. To suggest that enthusiasts dislike newer aircraft
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   To explain why the retirement reduces opportunities to see it

   The scarcity of operators heightens the retirement’s significance for future encounters.

   Lufthansa has been one of the few carriers still flying the model.

6. Question 6 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What contrast structures the third paragraph?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. Historical achievement versus contemporary practicality
   2. Passenger comfort versus airport congestion
   3. Lufthansa’s popularity versus its financial losses
   4. Aircraft speed versus cabin capacity
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   Historical achievement versus contemporary practicality

   The paragraph contrasts enduring technical achievement with declining operational viability.

   The retirement does not erase the aircraft’s technical achievements, but it does signal that operational practicality now outweighs the qualities that made the plane so endearing to its admirers.

7. Question 7 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What does the four-engine configuration symbolize in the article?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. A temporary response to fuel shortages
   2. An earlier era of aircraft design
   3. A failed attempt at cabin automation
   4. A new standard for streamlined operations
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   Answer

   An earlier era of aircraft design

   It symbolizes an earlier design philosophy that has gradually become less common.

   The A346’s four-engine configuration is particularly emblematic of that earlier era.

8. Question 8 · Single choice

   Choose one answer.

   What final impression does the article create about the A346?

   Return to the passage, recording or visual
   1. Its main achievement was becoming operationally invisible
   2. Its peculiarities gave it lasting emotional significance
   3. Its design was ultimately indistinguishable from newer models
   4. Its admirers valued efficiency above all other qualities
   Check answers and explanations

   Answer

   Its peculiarities gave it lasting emotional significance

   The conclusion presents its unusual personality as more memorable than its disappearance from ordinary view.

   The A346 may be remembered less for blending into the background than for making its peculiarities part of the journey.

What to review next

Find the words that support each answer. For a mistake, compare the question with the evidence and identify the detail or inference you missed.

A focused practice result shows how you did on these tasks. Use several activities across skills to decide what to study next; one practice score does not certify an overall CEFR level.

Before you practise: a worked example

Look for evidence in the text. Separate what the writer says from what you already know about the topic.

The library normally closes at six, but on Fridays it stays open until eight. When does it close on Friday?

The answer is eight. But introduces an exception to the normal closing time, so the first time mentioned is not the answer.

This teaching example is separate from the scored questions. After your test, compare any mistakes with the explanation and revisit the topic before trying again.