Lufthansa Boosts Boeing 787-9 Rollout, Replacing The Airbus A340 On Several US Routes

Lufthansa is increasing the rollout of its new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft this winter, with the type replacing its aging quadjets from the Airbus A340 family on several routes to and from the United States of America. At the same time, some of the corridors served by the German flag carrier will see frequency reductions.

The relationship between Lufthansa and the Boeing 787-9 has been somewhat strained in its early days, with certain premium seats on the Dreamliner unable to be used as they await certification. Still, its increasing rollout at the German flag carrier shows that it is gaining importance, as underlined by its use on US routes.

Chopping & Changing

According to recent reports by Aero Routes, Lufthansa plans to replace aircraft from the Airbus A340 family with its new Boeing 787-9 twinjets on several major US routes to and from its hub at Frankfurt Airport (FRA) this winter. For instance, November 2 will see the type take over from the A340-300 when flying to Atlanta (ATL), with the daily flights dropping to six a week from December 26 to February 23.

The situation is more complicated for Lufthansa’s route from Frankfurt to Detroit (DTW). Initially filed to be operated by the A340-300 this winter, its place will be taken by the A340-600 from October 26 to November 30, before another change of the guard brings the 787-9 into play on December 1. Commenting on the arrival of the first Allegris-equipped 787, Lufthansa Airlines CEO Jens Ritter recently said:

“With the arrival of the Boeing 787-9 today, the modernization of our long-haul fleet at our largest hub is now also receiving a major boost. This will enable us to use significantly quieter and fuel-efficient aircraft types featuring the latest technology for our guests in Frankfurt as well.”

More Movement Elsewhere

Much like the Atlanta route, Lufthansa’s services between Frankfurt Airport and Detroit will also be subjected to a frequency reduction this winter, dropping from daily flights to five a week from January 27 to February 24. However, with that being said, some US routes will see more consistent frequencies.

Indeed, AeroRoutes notes that the German flag carrier’s flights from Frankfurt to Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR), a key hub for its fellow Star Alliance founding member United Airlines, will remain daily throughout the winter. This route will first see the 787-9 on January 20, 19 days after the type is first deployed to replace the A340-300 on Lufthansa’s thrice-weekly Frankfurt-Raleigh/Durham (RDU) flights.

Interestingly enough, however, there is one North American route that will see the change made the other way, with the Airbus A340-300 temporarily replacing the Boeing 787-9. Indeed, as recently reported by Simple Flying, Lufthansa will deploy the quadjet between Frankfurt and Montréal (YUL) this October.

Lufthansa’s 787 Relationship Hasn’t Been All Plain Sailing

According to present fleet data made available by ch-aviation, Lufthansa currently has six examples of the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner at its disposal. These modern widebody twinjets are just three years old on average, and, in the coming years, they will be joined by another 29 examples for a total fleet of 35 Dreamliners.

As noted in the table above, Lufthansa favors three-class layouts with just under 300 seats on board its Boeing 787-9 aircraft, with two different options available. As it happens, the lower-density ‘Allegris’ layout has been the source of friction in recent times, with holdups pertaining to the certification of its seats.

Most notably, it was reported last month that, upon the Allegris-equipped 787’s entry into service, some of its business class seats would be blocked off, with Lufthansa unable to sell tickets for them until the product gains FAA approval. The German flag carrier’s Dreamliners have also been subjected to delivery delays, which have resulted in it having to postpone the Airbus A340-600’s retirement until 2026.