The takeoff runway length requirements for the A340 at max takeoff weight are the longest of all the wide-bodies. 3400m for the -600 fully loaded, vs 3000m for the A380 and 3100m for the B747-8 (numbers may not be quite right, im going off memory).Love the A340, these aircraft don't climb very steep do they until much further away from the airport. I've noticed this when watching video's on Youtube ?
Some pilots have described the A340 as having 4 hair dryers under the wings.
Probably explains the relatively shallow ascent profile.
I think they do look fairly nice, though (if you dont look at the engines!)