Lufthansa Debuts 787-9 Allegris Business Class with Mixed Results on Soft Product

Lufthansa recently launched its new Allegris business class cabin on its Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, marking a significant update in its long-haul premium offering. The 28-seat cabin spreads across nine rows in an alternating 1-2-1 and 1-1-1 layout, providing direct aisle access for every traveler. This configuration reflects Lufthansa’s effort to balance privacy with variety in seating choices, as customers can select from a range of seat types, although many assignments carry additional fees. The lack of adjacent seats for companion travelers, except costly front-row pairs, presents a notable challenge for those flying together.

The Allegris cabin impresses visually and functionally, with a modern aesthetic and several technical conveniences. Passengers benefit from extensive connectivity options, including USB-A, USB-C, AC power outlets, and wireless charging pads. The entertainment experience is enhanced by crisp seat-back monitors supporting Bluetooth audio and supplemented with Panasonic Wi-Fi service. While the Wi-Fi speeds remain modest and pricing inconsistencies were observed, Lufthansa plans to upgrade to Starlink in the future. Despite these amenities, some comfort issues remain, such as a rigid seat cushion that offers limited firmness adjustments and the absence of individual air nozzles—a contrast to the seat cooling found on Lufthansa’s A350 fleet.

Complementing the hardware upgrade, Lufthansa introduced its FOX soft product, which aims to elevate passenger comfort and service quality. This revamp includes new business class pillows, blankets, mattress pads, slippers, and a 100th anniversary amenity kit featuring BABOR products. Additionally, travelers receive brand-specific loungewear tops and a pre-landing box of branded chocolates. These enhancements signal a clear investment in passenger experience, addressing past deficits and aligning Lufthansa’s product with competitive standards on international business routes.

Despite these improvements, the catering experience on flights departing from U.S. cities like Austin reveals inconsistencies. While departures from Frankfurt showcase a more refined meal service with appealing presentation and quality, the same cannot be said for the Austin-to-Frankfurt leg. The amuse-bouche and appetizers received positive notes—highlighting creative options such as beef tenderloin with horseradish and black garlic accents. However, the main course, a seafood stew purporting to emulate a bouillabaisse, suffered from poor execution featuring small portions, overly chewy seafood, and lackluster presentation. This disparity underlines ongoing challenges in delivering a uniformly high-quality dining experience across all routes.

Breakfast service maintains some of these uneven patterns. Passengers complete a menu card to pre-order options, choosing from three selections. The spinach egg cake, although descriptively promising, failed to meet expectations and was characterized by an unappetizing texture likely resulting from powdered scrambled eggs. These shortcomings temper the otherwise positive steps Lufthansa has made in upgrading its inflight product.

Overall, Lufthansa's introduction of the 787-9 Allegris business class signals a thoughtful modernization of its long-haul premium cabin. The focus on seat variety, personal space, and enhanced amenities advances the airline’s competitive positioning. However, the inconsistent catering quality, particularly on transatlantic departures from the U.S., reveals there is room for refinement in the soft product. The balance of solid hardware performance with a mixed food service showcases the complexities of upgrading global premium offerings without sacrificing regional standards or passenger expectations. Lufthansa's future coordination of catering delivery and service consistency will be crucial for fully realizing the Allegris business class potential.