For a couple of years now, we’ve known that Lufthansa plans to introduce new business class cabins on its Airbus A380s. While this project was first supposed to start in 2025, that timeline was ultimately delayed.
In January 2026, the airline formally announced when these planes would be retrofitted. There’s now an update, as the first plane with the new interiors is entering service as of today, marking a new chapter for Lufthansa’s biggest plane.
All Lufthansa A380s will get new business class by mid-2027
Lufthansa is introducing a new business class product on its entire fleet of eight Airbus A380s. Rather interestingly, it’s only business class that’s getting new seats, while first class, premium economy, and economy, remain the same, aside from some minor upgrades (like improved inflight entertainment).
So, when are these planes getting new cabins? The Airbus A380 with the registration code D-AIMC has just entered service as of today, sporting the new interiors. The second A380 to get the new cabins has the registration code D-AIMH, and that plane just went into the “shop” on April 21, 2026, so expect it’ll be several weeks before that aircraft is in service.
This cabin retrofit project is taking place in Dresden (DRS), and the plan is for all A380s to be reconfigured by mid-2027. The first A380 with the new interiors is being rotated throughout the network, and will fly select frequencies from Munich (MUC) to Boston (BOS), Delhi (DEL), Los Angeles (LAX), Mumbai (BOM), and Washington (IAD), on alternating days.
What’s interesting is that Lufthansa isn’t introducing its new Allegris business class on these planes, but instead, is introducing another “off the shelf” product. Specifically, the airline has opted for the Thompson Aero Vantage XL product, which is in a staggered configuration.
Each seat has direct aisle access, seat width of 58cm, and a bed length of at least two meters. Seats feature bluetooth connectivity and flexible partitions. Lufthansa is calling this “Premium XXL,” which… I’m not sure if that’s supposed to describe the seat, or if Lufthansa is taking some liberties on a new Grindr profile, somehow turning Vantage XL into Premium XXL.
As A380s are reconfigured, the business class cabin is shrinking in size by 10 seats, going from 78 seats to 68 seats. First class continues to have eight seats, premium economy continues to have 52 seats, and economy continues to have 371 seats.
It’s pretty cool to note how Lufthansa has reversed course on the A380. At the beginning of the pandemic, Lufthansa grounded its fleet of Airbus A380s, and the intent was that these planes would be retired, and would only reenter service “in the event of an unexpectedly rapid market recovery.”
With the strong recovery we’ve seen in transatlantic leisure demand, the airline made the decision to start bringing back Airbus A380s as of the summer of 2023, and eight of the initial 14 are now back in service (six of them were sold). At first, the return of the A380s was mostly described as a temporary measure, in light of delayed Boeing 777-9 deliveries. The airline didn’t commit to keeping these planes around in the long run, though that changed over time.
In recent years it has become clear that the A380 will have a long term place in Lufthansa’s fleet. Clearly this investment in the business class product reflects that.
Why are Lufthansa A380s not getting new Allegris cabins?
Lufthansa of course has its new Allegris cabins, including the new Allegris business class and new Allegris first class. These cabins debuted on newly delivered Airbus A350-900s, and we’re also seeing them on newly delivered Boeing 787-9s (though without first class).
So why is Lufthansa not installing its new Allegris seats on the A380s? Well, I’d assume it comes down to a couple of factors. The biggest reason is quite straightforward — Lufthansa has had a really tough time getting its new Allegris seats certified, and these seats need to be certified on each individual aircraft. The idea is that by picking an “off the shelf” product, these seats are already certified, and therefore the airline can actually rely on getting them into service ASAP.
Second of all, I imagine that given the narrower fuselage of the A380 upper deck, it might’ve required even more complicated customization to fit the new Allegris seats up there.
For once, I’d say Lufthansa made a wise decision by just picking a generic product for its A380s. I think the big mystery is why Lufthansa just didn’t do this for its other planes, to avoid this entire mess. Separately, Lufthansa is reconfiguring its Boeing 747-8s, in a complicated two-part process. Initially, we’ll see the new Allegris business class seats on the lower deck, while the same business class seats will remain on the upper deck.
Bottom line
Lufthansa has started the process of introducing a new business class product on its Airbus A380s. The first plane with these cabins is now flying, with all eight super jumbos expected to be in service by the middle of 2027.
Rather than installing the new Allegris business class seats, the airline is instead installing a more generic product, the Thompson Aero Vantage XL seat, which is a significant improvement over the product you’ll otherwise find on these jets. As planes are reconfigured, business class capacity is being reduced by 10 seats, from 78 to 68.
Lufthansa sure is all over the place when it comes to modernizing its cabins. Either way, this change is good to see.
What do you make of Lufthansa’s new A380 business class plans?
