Lufthansa puts Airbus A380 superjumbo on Singapore-Frankfurt

By John Walton, July 13 2011
Lufthansa puts Airbus A380 superjumbo on Singapore-Frankfurt

Lufthansa's flagship Airbus A380 will begin daily flights between Singapore and Frankfurt later this year, making the German national carrier the fourth airline to put the superjumbo on routes between Australia, Asia and Europe.

Qantas, Singapore Airlines and Emirates already fly the A380 on the lucrative "Kangaroo Route" between Sydney and London, but Lufthansa will join the club with daily flights from 31 October 2011. 

Lufthansa currently uses older and smaller Boeing 747-400 planes on the route, so if you wanted to burn some Star Alliance frequent flyer miles to upgrade to the new 747 seat + bed first class, you'll need to pick another route.

Business travellers from Australia are likely to see some introductory fare discounts, with connecting flights to Singapore from Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney on Lufthansa's Star Alliance partners Singapore Airlines.

On the plane Lufthansa's A380s have eight first class seats (and an award-winning lavatory) at the front of the upper deck, and then the entire rest of the top floor is Business Class.  

But Lufthansa has crammed in 98 lie-flat angled business class seats in a 2-2-2 configuration rather than the fully flat beds that its Star Alliance partner Singapore Airlines and competitors Qantas and Emirates use.

Why are fully flat beds better than lie-flat angled seats? Don't miss our exposé on the Lie-Flat Lie for the lowdown.

So if you're planning to fly Business, we'd recommend picking a Singapore Airlines flight instead -- and don't forget our guide to picking the best seats in Singapore Airlines' A380 Business Class.

Downstairs on the main deck is an all-Economy configuration of 420 seats, from rows 50-94.

More Lufthansa flights makes this an excellent time to get free Lufthansa Miles & More frequent flyer status -- registration for that deal closes on 31 May. 

Tip of the hat to the ever-comprehensive Airline Route website for the new route information.

John Walton

Aviation journalist and travel columnist John took his first long-haul flight when he was eight weeks old and hasn't looked back since. Well, except when facing rearwards in business class.


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