In 2023, Lufthansa Group placed an order for the Airbus A350-1000 — the order was initially for 10 frames, before being increased to 15 frames the following year. The Lufthansa Group is undergoing a massive long haul fleet modernization at the moment, with both Airbus and Boeing planes on the way.
Along those lines, the first Lufthansa A350-1000 will join the fleet in the coming weeks (in a dazzling livery no less), and we now also have a sense of what routes the plane will fly, and how the cabin will be configured.
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Lufthansa has 15 Airbus A350-1000s on order
Between late 2026 and 2030, Lufthansa intends to take delivery of 15 Airbus A350-1000s. This is only one of several aircraft types the airline is acquiring, as it’s also taking delivery of Airbus A350-900s, Boeing 787-9s, and (eventually) Boeing 777-9s.
The expectation is that the first A350-1000 will be delivered in early October 2026. This plane will even feature the special 100th anniversary livery, as Lufthansa has seven of these flying, with one representing each fleet type.
The first plane will have the registration code D-AIFA, and it will be named “Deutschland” (since Lufthansa names all of its planes). This is a special plane for another reason, as it will be the 700th aircraft that Airbus has delivered to Lufthansa Group. How gorgeous is this plane?!?
On a slight tangent, I did recently see the 100th anniversary Boeing 747-8 in Frankfurt (FRA), and I must say, I think it might be the most breathtaking plane in commercial service. Is it just me?
Lufthansa A350-1000s will have 300 seats in four cabins
We’ve known that the Airbus A350-1000s will get the new Allegris cabins, including the new Allegris first class and Allegris business class. Up until now, the actual planned layout has been a bit of a mystery.
Fortunately aeroTELEGRAPH shares the details in an internal memo about what we can expect onboard. Lufthansa’s A350-1000s will feature 300 seats, spread across four cabins, as follows:
- Four first class seats (well, 3.5, really)
- 49 business class seats
- 35 premium economy seats
- 212 economy class seats
As a point of comparison, the A350-900s (the non-stretched version of the plane) features 267 seats, as follows:
- Four first class seats
- 38 business class seats
- 24 premium economy seats
- 201 economy class seats
So the stretched version has 11 more business class seats, 11 more premium economy seats, and 11 more economy seats (11 more seats across three cabins, what a funny coincidence). The airline is still maintaining only one row of first class, which is kind of “bleh.”
Lufthansa A350-1000 will be based in Munich
Lufthansa Airbus A350-1000s will be based in Munich (MUC), which is where Lufthansa bases all of its A350s. The plan is for them to start entering passenger service as of the IATA winter season, which kicks in as of late October 2026.
The expectation is that initial destinations will include Newark (EWR), Shanghai (PVG), Singapore (SIN), and Tokyo (HND), though the exact timeline with which each of those routes gets the aircraft remains to be seen. Meanwhile Chicago (ORD) is expected to be the fifth destination, with that service launching in the spring of 2027.
Bottom line
In 2023, Lufthansa placed an order for the Airbus A350-1000, and the first of these planes is expected to be delivered in early October 2026, entering service a few weeks later. The plane is expected to feature 300 seats across four cabins, though still only expect one row of first class seats. The Munich-based plane will initially fly to Newark, Shanghai, Singapore, and Tokyo.
I must say, Lufthansa knocked it out of the park with its centennial livery, and I can’t wait to see this plane flying.
What do you make of Lufthansa’s upcoming Airbus A350-1000 deliveries?
It's not 'just you,' Ben. That 100th anniversary Boeing 747-8 in Frankfurt is lookin' fiiine.