Austrian Airlines Boeing 787-9s Now Flying: What To Expect

In April 2023, Austrian Airlines revealed plans to refresh its long haul fleet, replacing its existing wide body aircraft with Boeing 787s. It’s an exciting day on that front, as Austrian is today operating its first-ever long haul flight with a 787 Dreamliner.

Austrian replacing 767s & 777s with 787s

Up until now, Austrian’s active long haul fleet has consisted of nine aircraft, including three Boeing 767-300ERs and six Boeing 777-200ERs. In order to modernize its fleet, Austrian is now taking delivery of 11 Boeing 787-9s. So that means the airline is not only refreshing its long haul fleet, but is also expanding it, which is pretty exciting.

More from OMAAT Our Wild Austrian Flight To Skiathos: A Fall, Two Go Arounds, And A Diversion Read more

The plan is for all Boeing 787 Dreamliners to join Austrian’s fleet between 2024 and 2028, at which point previous generation long haul aircraft will be fully retired.

Austrian’s 767s are an average of around 24 years old, while Austrian’s 777s are an average of around 23 years old, so it’s good that the long haul fleet is not only being modernized, but is also being grown.

For context on this aircraft acquisition, Lufthansa Group (the parent company of Lufthansa, SWISS, Austrian, and Brussels) has ordered dozens of Boeing 787-9s, Airbus A350-900s, and Airbus A350-1000s. The company didn’t initially reveal exactly which planes would go to which airlines, though as time has gone on, we’ve learned more and more about what to expect.

So far, here’s what we know about how these plane orders will be allocated:

• All Airbus A350-1000s will be operated by Lufthansa, and will be flown out of Munich with first class
• At least five Airbus A350-900s will be operated by SWISS, replacing Airbus A340-300s
• Lufthansa will operate the majority of Airbus A350-900s and Boeing 787-9s, though the exact number remains to be seen
• Austrian will get 11 Boeing 787-9s, though most of these aren’t part of the new aircraft orders, as I’ll explain below

Austrian 787 launches commercial service

For the past several weeks, Austrian’s Boeing 787s have been operating regional flights within Europe, for crew familiarization. That’s finally changing as of today, as Austrian is commencing long haul operations with these jets. The following two long haul routes are the first to get the new aircraft:

• As of June 15, 2024, Austrian has started flying the 787 between Vienna (VIE) and New York (JFK) on the OS87/88 frequency
• As of July 1, 2024, Austrian will start flying the 787 between Vienna (VIE) and Chicago (ORD) on the OS65/66 frequency

The first jet to enter service has the registration code OE-LPL. The aircraft is in an all white livery, as it hasn’t yet been painted in Austrian’s colors. So if you see an all-white 787 in Vienna or New York, now you know why.

It’s cool to think that in just over a couple of weeks, two of Austrian’s transatlantic routes will be operated by more modern aircraft. If you ask me, Austrian is the Lufthansa Group airline with the best business class soft product. Austrian has exceptional inflight catering, with an onboard chef, an amazing coffee menu, and delicious food. When the airline also has new seats, it’ll be a force to be reckoned with across the Atlantic.

Austrian’s first two 787s are former Bamboo Airways jets

The first two Boeing 787s that Austrian has taken delivery of are former Bamboo Airways jets. For context, the Vietnamese airline has been undergoing a restructuring, and has dumped all of its Boeing 787s. So Austrian has now taken delivery of two of these jets, with the registration codes OE-LPL and OE-LPM.

The planes will feature the same cabin layout, with 294 seats, including 26 business class seats, 21 premium economy seats, and 247 economy seats.

This is a fairly recent development, as Austrian only decided to expand its long haul fleet in this way in the past several months. You can read my review of Bamboo Airways’ 787 business class here.

Austrian’s next five 787s are former Lufthansa jets

The next five Boeing 787s that Austrian takes delivery of also won’t be new aircraft. Instead, they’ll be aircraft that are transferred from Lufthansa. Lufthansa has acquired five Boeing 787-9s that were initially intended for Hainan Airlines, and these planes have a totally different onboard product, as Lufthansa didn’t customize it to its own experience.

So you can expect these planes to eventually join Austrian’s fleet, though we don’t know about the timeline just yet. The initial plan was for them to join Austrian’s fleet in 2024, though due to Lufthansa’s own delivery delays, that might be pushed back quite a bit.

The planes will feature the same cabin layout as the former Bamboo Airways jets, with 294 seats, including 26 business class seats, 21 premium economy seats, and 247 economy seats.

You can read my review of Lufthansa’s 787 business class here.

What about Austrian’s other four 787s?

We know what to expect from Austrian’s first seven Boeing 787s, though one question as of now is what happens with Austrian’s other four Boeing 787s, since those are being acquired new. As of now, the airline is simply stating that the Boeing 787s will feature an “innovative cabin concept” that “enhances comfort for guests.”

As we know, Lufthansa is rolling out a new business class product, known as Allegris. This launched as of May 2024, and is first being installed on some newly delivered Airbus A350-900s, and then on some newly delivered Boeing 787-9s.

SWISS plans to introduce the same product on its Airbus A350-900s, except with SWISS branding, and the product will be known as SWISS Senses.

However, as of now there hasn’t been any public commitment to Austrian getting the same product. In terms of efficiency, you’d think that Austrian would just get the same seats with its own finishes, but that’s not confirmed one way or another.

Regardless, we’re probably a couple of years off from finding out, since it’ll probably be 2026 before the airline takes delivery of its actual first “new” 787. But it’s very possible that Austrian’s 787 fleet will have two different business class products.

Bottom line

Austrian Airlines is in the process of acquiring 11 Boeing 787s, with the first 787 entering long haul service as of today, and the last one entering service in 2028. These planes are being used to refresh the carrier’s long haul fleet, and to replace existing 767s and 777s.

The first two 787s to join Austrian’s fleet are former Bamboo Airways jets, the next five 787s to join Austrian’s fleet are former Lufthansa jets, and then the remaining four 787s should be new jets (though who really knows). The former Bamboo Airways jets will start to enter service as of today on long haul flights, with New York being the first destination.

What do you make of Austrian’s long haul fleet renewal plans?