Lufthansa is currently working on launching its new Allegris cabin design, featuring a completely revamped first class and business class. The fresh Allegris cabins first appeared on the newly delivered Airbus A350-900s, and they are now also being fitted on newly acquired Boeing 787-9s (although these aircraft lack a first class, and not all business class seats are yet available… oy).
Lufthansa has commenced the installation of Allegris seats on a third type of aircraft, with the first plane expected to be operational in the upcoming months. We have gathered additional information regarding this initiative, revealing an unusual two-part strategy.
Certain Lufthansa aircraft will not feature Allegris cabins
For context, at least officially, Lufthansa does not intend to implement its new Allegris cabin design on a significant number of its current fleet:
– Lufthansa has temporarily reintroduced A340-600s due to a shortage of aircraft, but these planes are set to retire in 2026 and will not receive the new Allegris cabins.
– Eight A380s have been reinstated by Lufthansa for continued service; these aircraft are anticipated to receive a different new business class offering but will not have the Allegris cabins.
– A340-300s are set to be retired by 2027, while A330-300s currently lack a defined retirement schedule, but they are not expected to remain in service much longer; it’s likely the A330-300s might be transferred to other carriers within the Lufthansa Group, such as Discover Airlines.
– Lufthansa’s remaining 747-400s form a small subfleet expected to retire in 2026, hence they won’t undergo reconfiguration.
Nonetheless, Lufthansa aims to retrofit its existing A350-900s with the new Allegris cabins, with that project slated to commence in 2027.
The retrofit of Lufthansa Boeing 747-8s with Allegris seats
Lufthansa intends to enhance its Boeing 747-8 fleet with the new Allegris seats across all classes. The airline operates 19 of these aircraft, averaging about 12 years old. While numerous airlines are phasing out 747s, Lufthansa stands out as one of the few to have ordered the updated 747-8, demonstrating a commitment to retain these planes.
Work has begun on reconfiguring the 747s. The first aircraft, registered D-ABYA, is currently undergoing cabin modification in Xiamen, China (XMN). This plane has been there since November 14, 2025, and the project is expected to extend until at least February 2026 (as it’s typical for the initial aircraft to require extra time for reconfiguration). Here’s what is anticipated:
– In the beginning, Lufthansa intends to install its Allegris business class seats on the lower deck of the 747-8, with a total of 48 business class seats allocated there, matching the current number of business class seats.
– Meanwhile, the airline will keep the old business class seats in the upper deck, maintaining 32 business class seats in a 2-2 configuration.
– Additionally, the structure of the first class cabin will not be updated for the time being, and it will remain located in the nose of the aircraft.
However, this represents just the first phase of the project. At some point during 2027 or 2028, the airline plans to refresh the first class and upper deck business class. The upper deck will eventually be outfitted with the new Allegris business class seats, along with a number of Allegris first class seats.
This plan is quite unconventional, right? I cannot recall another airline that has retained both an old and a new business class offering on the same aircraft. My understanding is that Lufthansa will designate the upper deck seats as the standard option when booking business class, while the lower deck Allegris seats will be available for a supplemental charge of around €300 per segment. However, with 60% of the seats being Allegris, it’s reasonable to assume that many passengers might be “upgraded” to the lower deck at no extra cost.
aeroLOPA appears to have gained access to the new cabin layout and has shared the updated seat map here. With the initial phase of the plane’s reconfiguration, we will observe a reduction in overall capacity from 364 seats to 348 seats. First class will retain eight seats, business class will maintain 80 seats (with a slightly larger footprint), premium economy will expand from 32 seats to 40 seats, and economy will decrease from 244 seats to 220 seats.
One intriguing aspect of the new layout is that there will be an economy cabin on the main deck, then