That the Lufthansa been working on a new cabin for a while is not new. After there were only a few render images so far, the company has let the cat out of the bag for the first time today. There are numerous new photos for First, Business and Economy Class.
The highlight is undoubtedly the new First Class, about which hardly any details have come to light so far. Now we see a suite with doors and high walls that offers an unprecedented level of privacy. And a huge monitor at that.
The new cabin lives up to its name Allegris. With it comes a new design style that focuses more on the color dark blue. Lufthansa is therefore orienting itself a little further away from the sterile gray and white tones – and also dispenses with the yellow splashes of color.
New First Class with doors
In contrast to other airlines, Lufthansa does not intend to give up First Class permanently. Since the current first-class seat is already a few years old, the replacement is just right.
As the pictures show, the new First Class offers an enormous degree of privacy thanks to meter-high walls. In addition, it is noticeable:
- The composition of dark blue furnishings with light wood elements is very harmonious and elegant
- It is still possible to dine together, the second person then sits on the opposite stool
- The screen (roughly more than 30 inches diagonal) takes up almost the entire width of the seats
- The red rose remains the trademark of Lufthansa First Class
New photos from business class
The new Business Class was announced by Lufthansa a few years ago. At that time it was even one of the reasons why SkyTrax promoted Lufthansa to a 5-star airline.
Accordingly, there is not much that is new here. As already known, Lufthansa does not rely on what is now usual Reverse-Herringbone-Layout. Instead, the seats are staggered so that they sit in individual rows throneseat with a particularly large storage area. Each passenger has direct access to the aisle, so no one has to climb over their neighbors.
There is one in the front rows Business Suite with lockable doors. Passengers have to pay extra for this as well.
Premium Economy with bucket seats
There is no new information on Premium Economy Class. In any case, Swiss has been flying through the air with the same seats for several months, ie there are no surprises.
The new seats are bucket seats, ie the rear panel of the seat is fixed and the backrest moves forward instead of backwards. What sounds nice could possibly cause problems for people with long legs,
Sleeper couches come in Economy Class
For a long time, Lufthansa has been getting the opinions of passengers about potential sofa beds in economy class. The time will soon come and the product will be officially launched. Economy passengers can then book a seat with a leg rest at an additional cost. This cushion can be folded up, resulting in a short, but at least quite wide lying surface:
The unusually wide and angular headrest still raises a question mark for me. Otherwise, the seats look a lot like what we already know from the A350 – with a larger monitor.
Existing aircraft are converted
On the one hand, the new cabin is to be installed in the new Boeing 787-9, Airbus A350 and Boeing 777X that Lufthansa will be taking delivery of in the coming years. In addition, existing aircraft are also to be converted.
Lufthansa explicitly mentions the Boeing 747-8, which is likely to remain a Lufthansa workhorse for a long time to come. But other planes should also get the new cabin. It will certainly take a few years for all aircraft to be converted.
Conclusion
It doesn’t matter whether it’s first class or business: In contrast to the competition from the Middle East, Asia and the like, Lufthansa’s current hard product simply looks outdated. The refreshment of the cabin is only a logical consequence and long overdue.
In the photo, the new First Class offers more than I would have thought Lufthansa capable of. Perhaps Lufthansa will actually manage to regain the status of a premium airline. But something has to be done at the back, in Economy.
Those: Aerotelegraph and Lufthansa press release
Cover picture: © Lufthansa