Lufthansa has announced its plans to refit the business class section on the upper deck of its Airbus A380 ‘superjumbo’ double-decker widebody quadjets. The Cologne-based German flag carrier and Star Alliance founding member is set to begin this process next month, with the first refitted A380 expected to re-enter service as early as April of this year. The entire refit process for its eight-strong A380 fleet should take just over a year.
According to present fleet data made available by ch-aviation, 
Lufthansa currently has a grand total of eight units of the Airbus A380 at its disposal. It previously flew another six examples of the type, but the onset and impacts of the coronavirus pandemic in the early 2020s forced it to consolidate its A380 ops. These jets are 13.8 years old on average, compared to a fleet-wide mean figure of 14.9 years, and six are currently active.
A Major Refresh
As confirmed by the German carrier in a statement released earlier today, Lufthansa is gearing up for a major refit program concerning the business class cabins on board its Airbus A380 fleet. According to Seat Maps, these jets presently have a grand total of 509 seats on board, split between eight in first class, 78 in business class, 52 in premium economy, and 371 in economy. The business class seats occupy most of the top deck.
However, while they offer lie-flat comfort, their six-abreast 2-2-2 configuration means that passengers seated at the windows do not enjoy the benefit of direct aisle access. In recent years, this has become more of an expectation in modern long-haul business class travel, and Lufthansa is now set to remedy this with a refit that will see it install 68 seats in a 1-2-1 layout. Heiko Reitz, Lufthansa’s Hub Manager at Munich Airport, explained that:
« The new premium seats offer more privacy and significantly more comfort than before. We look forward to offering our passengers this enhanced travel experience in business class starting in April. »
Available From April
As seen above, the new layout will be staggered, with window seats alternating between being directly next to the window and closer to the aisle. Lufthansa plans to get started on this work in February, with the Elbe Flugzeugwerke in Dresden being the facility of choice for the refit program. D-AIMC, nicknamed ‘Mike Charly,’ will be the first of Lufthansa’s eight to be refitted, and is expected to re-enter service from Munich in April 2026.
The refit program is part of a wider initiative described by the German flag carrier as « the most extensive fleet renewal in its history » that will « modernize the cabin interiors of its largest aircraft. » Indeed, the A380 won’t be the only one of Lufthansa’s various widebody models to be refitted, with the A350-900 and Boeing 747-8 also in line for new seats. All in all, the A380 refits will take just over a year, and are expected to finish in mid-2027.
Lufthansa has selected Thompson as the manufacturer of the new business class seats on its Airbus A380s. These will be 58 cm (22.8″) wide and, when converted to a bed, measure at least two meters (6′ 7″) in length. They will offer « Bluetooth connectivity and flexible partitions » among other amenities, with the German flag carrier promising to « provide both comfort and privacy at a new premium level » with its new business class seats.
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Where Does Lufthansa Fly The Airbus A380?
According to present scheduling data made available by Cirium, an aviation analytics company, Lufthansa only plans to operate its Airbus A380 on two routes from its Bavarian hub in Munich this February. The destinations in question are both located in Asia, namely at Indira Gandhi Airport (DEL) in New Delhi, India, and Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) in Bangkok, Thailand. Both of these airports will see a daily A380 round trip from Lufthansa.
Going forward, however, the rest of the year will see some interesting developments as far as Lufthansa’s Airbus A380 operations are concerned. Indeed, as detailed in the video above, the German flag carrier’s superjumbos will return to Denver International Airport (DEN) in the US federal state of Colorado this summer, following a successful trial last year. Lufthansa will resume its Airbus A380 flights to and from Denver on June 9, 2026.