Lufthansa is utilising this time to trial new economy concept products. While it recently announced that in economy passengers on short-haul flights will now have to pay for dining and drink options, on the long-haul network the carrier is currently testing a new Economy Class seating concept called “Sleeper’s Row”. This product follows the likes…
Read MoreBritish Airways Roll Out A Beautiful 747 Retrojet That Puts Lufthansa’s New Scheme To Shame
BOAC is back! No, not really, but perhaps it should be. This simple yet stunning retrojet livery has been rolled out by British Airways to celebrate its centenary which it is enjoying this year. While the aircraft has been much-anticipated by avgeeks across the UK and further afield, the reveal wasn’t a disappointment. Large crowds…
Read MoreLufthansa’s Sneaky Product Launch Shows Off What The Airline Could Have (Should Have) Looked Like
Last week saw a new brand partnership take its first steps between Adidas and Lufthansa. Last Friday, if you flew with the airline you might have seen a slightly more relaxed approach to the uniforms due to the airline – in a one-time-only event – allow crew to wear trainers. This was conveniently timed to…
Read MoreLufthansa Creates New Lounge Concept, Starting With Milan Malpensa Lounge
Lufthansa have just opened their latest lounge, this one in Milan Malpensa. Serving their 7+ flights per day to Frankfurt and Munich, the lounge is certainly large enough at 550 square metres and featuring 117 seats. The new design concept certainly embraces a ‘cosy atmosphere’ as it states in its press release, with warmer tones…
Read MoreLufthansa’s New Blue Livery Sadly Misses The Mark
Today saw Lufthansa launch its new livery in an event in Cape Town. While many will probably like this new clean, monochromatic paint scheme, we can’t help but feel a little disappointed to see such an iconic livery be literally whitewashed. Sure, almost all liveries grow on us with time, but that doesn’t stop us…
Read MoreLufthansa Shows Off New 777-9 Business Class, To Launch In 2020
2020 will see a new type of business class seat join Lufthansa’s fleet. Last week Lufthansa revealed its brand-new Business Class product that will be available with the roll-out of the Boeing 777-9. The new seat might look familiar, as it shares a lot of similarities with Acumen’s Optima seat design, which can also be found…
Read MoreInside Lufthansa’s Brand New A350-900
Lufthansa revealed its new A350-900 in Munich yesterday with a spectacular light show and an official unveiling ceremony in the Lufthansa Technik Hangar. The first of 10 aircraft was named ‘City of Nuremberg’ in front of an audience of 2,000 employees and guests. The aircraft is the airline’s most modern and technologically advanced featuring better fuel consumption…
Read MoreNew Amenity Kits From Lufthansa And Austrian
Recently there have been a few new amenity kits surfacing around the world, with Qantas and JAL recently releasing their kits. We take a look at two of the latest. Long gone are the cheap plastic looking bags. Airlines have invested heavily into beautiful keepsakes that will last for years. By partnering with some of the…
Read MoreLufthansa’s New Premium Economy
Lufthansa have been working on a new premium economy product for the past few years and have just announced they are to be introduced into their long haul fleet. Seen globally as a huge success since the invention from Virgin Atlantic, in 1992, many airlines now offer a class between economy and business class, as…
Read MoreLufthansa’s New Project Direct 4 You
Whilst this hasn’t been officially released by Lufthansa, German newspaper Bild has reported through sources close to the airline that they are planning on launching a new low-cost unit (similar to the recent launch of IAG’s Iberia’s new Iberia Express) The new airline has been dubbed ‘Direct 4 You’ and will basically be an amalgamation of Germanwings…
Read MoreTrip Report: TAP Portugal A330neo Business Class December 2020
TAP Portugal is well known as one of the cheapest Star Alliance carriers, however, with the addition of its new Airbus Neo fleet, the aging business class cabin (albeit comfortable) has been given a new lease of life thanks to brand new Recaro seats.
Read MoreCould paper and card be a simple solution to help stop viral transmission?
A recent National Institute of Health report highlighted the length of time that different viral strains could possibly live on surfaces. Most of us have heard how a trace of Covid-19 can live on plastic and metal for up to three days (albeit ever reducing in strength), whereas copper and cardboard/paper are found to be…
Read MoreOpinion: Why the world needs innovative airlines like Virgin Atlantic and Air New Zealand
As the phrase goes, “good things come in small packages.” In 2018, the airline industry carried 4.4billion passengers. It has become an integral part of human life, but it’s also an industry of behemoth players. In fact, in 2018, the top 10 airline groups transported over one third of the entire annual traffic, leaving the…
Read MoreLothansa? The challenge of having similar tail fins
It seems the week before Christmas brought a challenge from LOT Polish Airlines to Lufthansa regarding the German flag carrier’s somewhat contentious new livery. The Polish carrier draws issue with the fact Lufthansa’s reimagined tail fin has an uncanny resemblance to theirs. While we agree there are similarities, to our our trained eye, they are…
Read MoreCondor brings back its older logo to its tail fins, and we have to admit, we love it
Condor has started to bring back its own logo to the tails of its fleet. At the end of last week, the new design was unveiled to the employees, and the weekend saw the first Boeing 767 with the registration D-ABUF making its first flight in the new Condor look to Cancun in Mexico. In…
Read MoreWhy branding airlines for Millennials and Gen Z’s is the wrong approach
The past few years has seen a few airlines decide to position themselves as a lifestyle brand, appealing to the younger, time-rich generation who are gap-year embracing, iPhone toting and generally bank-rolled by their parents. While airlines – like the big US 3 – see their passenger demographic age as fast as the airline does,…
Read MoreSwiss opens stunning new Alpine lounge in Zurich, to ease crowding and re-inject a true taste of Swiss culture
Today sees the opening of the latest Swiss lounge in Zurich, replacing the old First Class lounge in the A gates of Terminal 2, the new Alpine Lounge helps provide some respite to the Schengen departure swells due to the morning and evening flight banks. The airline has several lounges already across Zurich, and all…
Read MoreSAS reveal exciting new livery, going against the grain of some of its counterparts
It has been 21 years in the making, but SAS has just revealed a bold new livery for its aircraft that refreshes the current version with more depth, modernity and colour. The brand new visual identity and new design for its aircraft exterior is a refreshing take on a classic Scandinavian design. It “highlights the…
Read More5 great upgraded Business Class cabins already flying in 2019
2019 has already seen a wealth of new product launches and new aircraft deliveries. This means that passengers are starting to experience the latest wave in business class seats and cabins across the globe. While there are many more exciting products on the horizon from Emirates‘ Premium Economy product through to Lufthansa’s new 777 business…
Read MoreCan Star Ratings Of Airlines Be Trusted?
In a world where everyone can now easily become a critic, navigating our way through the vast swathes of reviews can be daunting. After all, human nature dictates we will only ever comment on something exceptional. This is why ‘average’ reviews are rarely seen, with either excellent or scathing comments usually posted. Airlines are subject…
Read MoreBrussels Airlines Launches Bruegel, Its Sixth Belgian Icon
The chances are by now if you travel around Europe, you’ve probably seen one of Brussels Airlines ‘Icon’ aircraft at some point over the past few years. After honouring Tintin in 2015, followed by Magritte, the Red Devils, Tomorrowland and the Smurfs, Brussels Airlines has just unveiled another Belgian Icon, a unique aircraft inspired by…
Read MoreNew Star Alliance Lounge Opens In Amsterdam
Star Alliance customers travelling from Amsterdam Schiphol can look forward to a new lounge experience, competing with the new KLM Crown Lounge that is still in development. The new Star Alliance Lounge will welcome eligible First and Business Class passengers and Star Alliance Gold Card holders as well as eligible paid lounge members of the…
Read MoreAustrian Rolls Out A Retrojet (Yes, Another Retrojet) And This Won’t Be The Last…
Yes, retrojets, they are the seemingly appearing with increasing frequency. In fact the chances they are popping up on your social feed more often than the never-ending stream of cat memes. So the latest from Austrian might not necessarily be a surprise, but its a welcome addition to the airline’s fleet, anything but one of…
Read MoreIn This Current Climate, Is There A Need For Leading Business Class Airlines?
No matter how we look at it, the aviation business class landscape is changing, and is potentially as fragmented as ever. The race to the bottom is evident, even in currently touted ‘5-star airlines’ who seek profitability. Whether a desire to chase the most effective cabin configuration (LOPA), decision to reduce amenities to the bare…
Read More2019, The Game Of Thrones
While most people will be getting excited about the final instalment of the globally successful HBO franchise, 2019 will also see a range of new business class seats across the globe that will see the business class experience becoming more and more competitive with regards to the hard product on offer. With seat designers and…
Read MoreTheDesignAir Launches 2018 Awards Shortlist
TheDesignAir is pleased to announce the shortlist for the DesignAir Awards 2018 and just like last year, we’ve opened some of the categories to the public, so you can vote for the winners you feel are most worthy. Now is your chance to pick from our shortlisted categories for Best Design Airline, by region, across…
Read MoreSeven Of The Best Lounge Views In Heathrow Airport
Heathrow has no less than forty-something lounges across the expansive airport, but the offering can vary substantially, so selecting the right lounge can be a bit of a challenge. For those fellow aviation nuts out there though, the airport does offer a range of lounges with excellent views of the runways and apron, making spotting…
Read MoreSwiss Opens Stylish New Zurich Business And Senator Lounges
Swiss has just opened its redesigned Lounge Centre A at Zurich Airport in Switzerland. The new lounge complex, which is mainly aimed at short-haul travellers, includes a Business and a Senator Lounge. These follow the design of the First Class lounge which recently opened. Made up of series of zones with a range of privacy…
Read More10 Under 10. The Ten Small Airlines That You Really Should Get To Know In 2018
While many airlines in the world vie to be the biggest, there are a few smaller airlines that are certainly fighting to be the best. We take a look at 10 airlines under 10 million passengers per annum that are doing something special in 2018 that – we think – might just be worth getting…
Read MoreTrip Report: Condor B767 Business Class May 2018
Flight: DE2114 Aircraft Type: B767-300ER Class: Business Class Route: FRA-CUN Date: May 2018 http://www.condor.com While a recent announcement that Condor is going to replace its ‘ageing’ fleet of Boeing 767’s may have hit the headlines, we decided to take this leisure-airline hybrid for a spin to see what their business class product delivers. Although part of the Thomas Cook Group,…
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