As we all know, Lufthansa is (very slowly) rolling out its new Allegris passenger experience, which includes an all-new first class and business class experience. The new product is a massive improvement over the old one, though one big challenge has been actually getting onto planes with the new cabins. Along those lines, there’s a positive update…
In this post:
Lufthansa outlines Allegris rollout plans by aircraft
Initially, Lufthansa’s new Allegris cabins are available on newly delivered Airbus A350-900s, Boeing 787-9s, and Boeing 777-9s (if/when those are delivered). The question is, what happens to Lufthansa’s existing fleet? Up until this point, we’ve known that:
- Lufthansa is retiring its Airbus A330-300s, A340-300s, A340-600s, and Boeing 747-400s, so we know those won’t get the new cabins
- Lufthansa plans to retrofit its Boeing 747-8s with the new Allegris product, though in a bizarre way, where the plane will temporarily have two different kinds of business class products
- Lufthansa’s Airbus A380s are getting cabin retrofits, but not the new Allegris product, but instead, a more generic business class product
- Lufthansa has a handful of Boeing 787-9s that were acquired secondhand, which will be transfered to Austrian in the coming years, so those won’t be retrofitted
One big question up until now has been when existing Airbus A350-900s will be reconfigured, given that these are staying in Lufthansa’s fleet for years to some. The airline has 31 A350s — 10 have been delivered since early 2024 with the Allegris cabins, 17 have Lufthansa’s old business class, and four are former Philippine Airlines planes, with a modified business class product.
Lufthansa has finally revealed when it plans to retrofit these planes — in an updated Allegris rollout plan, Lufthansa states it will retrofit A350s with Allegris cabins in 2027. So we’ll see how this timeline all plays out, but it sounds like best case scenario, these retrofits will start in 2027, and I think it’ll take well into 2028 before that project is complete.
This is the first time I recall seeing an actual timeline for the A350 retrofits, so that’s good news, even if these cabin upgrades aren’t imminent.
There’s still a question about Lufthansa Allegris first class
It’s going to be interesting to see whether Lufthansa configures all of its A350-900s in the same way, or if the airline installs first class on some of the planes, but not on others. All the new A350s that Lufthansa is taking delivery of feature first class.
However, in recent years, the airline has been moving in the direction of offering first class on a smaller percentage of the fleet. So I could see this going either way. Will Lufthansa have first class on all retrofitted A350s as well, to build a consistent fleet? Or will the airline retrofit A350s with a three-cabin layout, without first class?
For that matter, there’s still a question as to whether the new flagship Boeing 777-9s will get first class. Back when they were first ordered (pre-pandemic), the plan was firmly for these planes not to get first class. I’ve said all along that seems a little questionable, and I’ve increasingly heard rumors and claims that the planes could have first class, but I haven’t seen anything official there.
We could potentially be looking at a pretty uneven hub distribution in terms of first class footprint, given that A350s are typically based in Munich (MUC), while 747s, 777s, and 787s, are/will be based in Frankfurt (FRA).
Bottom line
Lufthansa is trying to increase the number of long haul aircraft it has with new Allegris cabins. Within the next year, Lufthansa will start retrofitting its Boeing 747-8s, which is something we’ve known for quite some time already. We’ve now learned that as of 2027, Lufthansa will also start reconfiguring its Airbus A350-900s.
I’m happy to see that the existing A350s will be getting new interiors as well, though we will have to be patient (unsurprisingly).
What do you make of Lufthansa’s A350 Allegris retrofit plans?
Do you think the pace of the A350 retrofits will affect the pace of the A340-300 retirements? I know that sub-subsidiary Edelweiss will have at least 1 A340 in reserve or flying in the event of an A350 going out of service until all of Edelweiss’s A350s are retrofitted.
Will all 21 A350s get retrofitted or just the 17 that didn’t come from PAL?
Is lufthansa's first class demand split evenly between Frankfurt and Munich or does one city have more first class demand than the other?
Completely irrelevant to the post, but I used to fly SFO-MUC on the 346 every month, and not sure why, but always thought those downstairs bathrooms in back was just the smartest and coolest thing. Then my boss started letting me fly in the front. I remember I had a Diet Coke once before the meal, and during the meal I asked for another, and the FA replied: "You already had one." And would not bring me another. Ahhhh Lufthansa.
Passengers will be beaten until customer satisfaction surveys improve.
Lufty: Retrofits coming in 2027!
Me: You missed April Fools by five months.
SkyTrax: Wunderbar! Here's another *. You are now an official 8* airline!
Lufty: Yay! Here's another bonus for my executives!
@Ben
What has Lufthansa said about first class on the A380s and 747-8s? Will they retain their old open first class on these planes or will they retrofit them with Allegris first class since first class is on the main deck on both the A380s and 747-8 with the problem being the nose section of the 747-8.
@ Nasir -- No plans have been announced to introduce a new first class on the A380. For the 747, the plan is for the plane to get the new Allegris first class during the second round of reconfigurations, when the upper deck will also get the new business class. Complicated, eh?
I do wonder how LH's marketing is going to look like when/if those planes get retrofitted with Allegris J while still keeping the old F (and that's not even counting the 748s that will have the new J downstairs, old J upstairs, and old F downstairs, simultaneously).
I'm already imagining something along the lines of 'having choices'...
@Ben
That is too complicated. I never thought that a brand like Lufthansa will become a joke.