Lufthansa is in the process of introducing its new Allegris cabin concept, which includes an all-new first class and all-new business class. While these cabins are debuting on newly delivered Airbus A350-900s (and eventually Boeing 787-9s), Lufthansa has limited plans to retrofit existing aircraft.
We’ve known that Lufthansa intends to introduce its new Allegris concept on Boeing 747-8s, and there’s now a positive update regarding that.
In this post:
Many Lufthansa planes won’t get Allegris cabins
For some background, at least officially, Lufthansa doesn’t have plans to introduce its new Allegris concept on a vast majority of existing aircraft:
- Lufthansa has brought back A340-600s temporarily, to operate flights out of Munich with first class until Lufthansa’s A350-900s with first class are delivered, and there are no plans to install new cabins
- Lufthansa has brought back some A380s, and while these planes are getting a new business class as of late 2025, they won’t get the new Allegris cabins
- Lufthansa A340-300s will eventually be retired, while A330-300s will likely eventually leave Lufthansa’s fleet (and maybe be used by Discover Airlines), so there aren’t plans to invest in these cabins beyond the current generation business class
- Lufthansa has only a small subfleet of 747-400s remaining, and they’re expected to be retired in the coming years, so won’t be reconfigured
- Lufthansa hasn’t announced plans to reconfigure existing A350-900s and 787-9s with the new Allegris cabins, though I imagine that could change over time
Lufthansa 747-8s will get new Allegris cabins
As reported by Executive Traveller, Lufthansa has plans to retrofit its Boeing 747-8 fleet with the new Allegris seats in all cabins. Lufthansa has 19 of these jets, and they’re an average of just over 10 years old. While other airlines are largely retiring 747s, Lufthansa was one of the few airlines to order the updated 747-8, and it seems the carrier is committed to keeping these planes around.
Also keep in mind that Lufthansa is obviously committed to these jets because they’re all based in Frankfurt, and they’re the primary aircraft based at the airport to feature first class. Lufthansa also plans to base its Boeing 777-9s in Frankfurt (if/when delivery happens), but those planes won’t feature first class. Lufthansa Group has now also ordered Airbus A350-1000s, and those are expected to feature first class, but we don’t know anything beyond that.
What remains to be seen is with what timeline 747-8s will be reconfigured, as that hasn’t yet been revealed, and that’s kind of an important detail. Personally I wouldn’t be surprised if this only starts in late 2025 or 2026, as Lufthansa doesn’t really have many surplus aircraft, due to new aircraft delivery delays.
What to expect onboard Lufthansa’s reconfigured 747-8s
While some details remain to be seen, we now have a sense of what we can expect onboard Lufthansa’s reconfigured Boeing 747-8s. The 747 is a tricky plane when it comes to installing cabins, given the curvature of the “nose,” plus the upper deck, which is significantly narrower than the lower deck.
Lufthansa will continue to have first class in the nose of the 747-8, though the airline will have a modified product compared to what’s on the A350, given space constraints. Lufthansa currently has eight first class seats on the 747-8, with three seats along the windows on each side, plus two seats in the center.
Lufthansa’s new first class looks like a huge upgrade over the old product. On the A350, there will be a total of just three first class suites that will be able to accommodate up to four travelers — there will be two single suites by the windows, and a double suite in the center.
Lufthansa reportedly plans to install six Allegris first class seats on the 747-8, with one of them being a double suite. I’m curious about the logistics of that. Will there be three rows of single seats, with one of the seats in the last row being a double suite, or how will that work?
Then that brings us to business class, which is equally challenging. Installing the Allegris business class seats on the lower deck is super easy, since the 747 lower deck cabin is even wider than the A350 or 787 cabin, so there will be room to spare.
The much more challenging thing is installing this on the upper deck, which is somewhere between a wide body and narrow body in terms of width, and you have a single aisle. For some time, there had been discussion of Lufthansa installing its new business class seats on the lower deck, but keeping the old business class seats on the upper deck. This was an absurd concept, though fortunately the airline has chosen not to follow through with these plans.
The new plan is reportedly for Lufthansa to just have a 1-1 layout on the upper deck. Essentially with the above seat map, just picture the cabin without the center suites. Lufthansa plans to fit either 20 or 22 business class seats on the upper deck. That’s a massive capacity reduction, compared to the 32 business class seats currently on the upper deck.
Meanwhile I don’t think there will be any major surprises in premium economy or economy, since there’s not really any game changing element to those cabins.
Bottom line
Lufthansa’s Boeing 747-8s will be getting the new Allegris cabins, which is exciting. However, we don’t know the timeline with which that will happen.
It’s expected that the planes will feature a modified first class product, given the space constraints in the nose of the 747. You can expect there will be six first class suites, including one double suite. On top of that, there will be business class on both the upper deck and lower deck, with the upper deck having 20-22 seats in a 1-1 configuration.
As a Boeing 747 lover, I can’t wait to see the jumbo get new interiors! Then again, I imagine it’ll be several years before the first plane is reconfigured.
What do you make of Lufthansa’s plans to reconfigure Boeing 747-8s?
Will the new cabins soften the blow from landings like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUHsWr-K3Fc
The Allegris aisle seats on the upper deck would be quite sub par to the window seats. Maybe those will have an additional surcharge compared to the window seats on the lower deck, since the new concept is to give their customers “choices”.
I would much rather prefer a reverse herringbone configuration on the upper deck.
There’s only one aisle upstairs lol, how would they not have window seats?
The only thing consistent about LH onboard product is inconsistency.
I wonder if they are updating the economy cabin? I recently flew FRA-SFO in one of these and it was like going back in time 15 years. Very uncomfortable experience compared to a LH A350.
Wondering if the F layout in the nose will be a center suite (wider than a standard seat) right at the front of the cabin and then 2 of the standard seats down each side, maybe with a small drinks bar in the center.
Random thought - given how many posts you write Ben, it is amazing how few spelling mistakes there are. You have amazing attention to detail.
Credits should be given to ChatGPT and spell check in addition to the author.