Lufthansa now has six different business class seats across its fleet

Navigating the landscape of Lufthansa business class layouts on its long-haul fleet is not a simple task. The airline has gradually increased the number of different layouts it has on its planes as a result of acquiring planes from the secondary market and not renovating older configurations to keep them up to date with the newer setups. Today, Lufthansa has six different business class layouts across its fleet.

In this post:

• The six Lufthansa business class configurations
• How has this chaos come into existence?
• So what do the different configurations consist of?
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The six Lufthansa business class configurations

Setting aside the European business class, which is not a real business class, Lufthansa has six different business class setups for its long-haul fleet of wide-body aircraft. Here is the full list of those configurations:

• Allegris
• The new A380 Retrofit
• The “classic” Collins Diamond
• Ex-Philippine Airlines A350-900
• Ex-LATAM Stelia Solstys
• Ex-Hainan Collins Super Diamond

To be fair, there are two configurations which are very similar to each other. That is the new Airbus A380 retrofit and the Ex-Philippine Airlines A350 business class configuration. They are both based on the Thompson Vantage XL seat, with the only difference being the Ex-Philippine Airlines A350 business class seats being an older version.

How has this chaos come into existence?

Two things have happened to create this current situation in the Lufthansa business class.

First of all, Lufthansa has picked up aircraft on the secondary market without then retrofitting its own product onto the aircraft itself. That is the case with the planes they picked up from Philippine Airlines, LATAM and Hainan Airlines.

It sees the chance of getting a discount on strategically important jets, and took the easier route of maintaining the business class that they had been fitted with by the original owners.

Secondly, Lufthansa has updated its product, some might say a little late, but nonetheless it has updated its product on its newer planes and most recently on its Airbus A380s. Leaving behind planes awaiting retrofitting and those which will be retired and therefore not retrofitted.

That is the case with the Allegris cabins and the retrofitted Airbus A380 business class. Therefore, as of April 2026 there are discrepancies in the cabin layout between some of the A380s, some of the Airbus A350s, and the 787s.

Getting the better version of the cabin is just down to luck at this point in many of the flights Lufthansa operates on its long-haul network.

So what do the different configurations consist of?

Let's kick things off with Lufthansa's most modern business class cabin: the Allegris.

Despite being the most modern and up-to-date business class product, it has been quite controversial. The Allegris consists of seats which have very different orientations and positions throughout the cabin, making each seat uniquely different from the other. In simple terms, this is a staggered 1-2-1 and 1-1-1 layout. Granting each passenger direct aisle access. It is present on newly delivered A350-900s and Boeing 787-9s, and on a selection of retrofitted Boeing 747-8i.

The new A380 retrofitted business class, on the other hand, is a step forward from the previous 2-2-2 configuration, but it is not at the same level as the Allegris. The airline wanted to avoid certification delays as it encountered with the 747-8 and has gone with a simpler, easier route. Business class on the Airbus A380 is now based on the Thompson Vantage XL seat and grants direct aisle access to all passengers with a 1-2-1 configuration.

Then there is the legacy business class. The “classic” Collins Diamond is still extremely common across the fleet of wide-body aircraft. This is the very dated 2-2-2 configuration, which still is featured on a number of 747-8i, the fleet of Boeing 747-400, the A340s, the A330s, and the non-retrofitted A350-900s.

Lastly, there's the three business classes that Lufthansa acquired by purchasing wide-body aircraft on the secondary market. Lufthansa picked up deals buying aircraft that were either owned or meant for:

• Philippine Airlines (registrations from D-AIVA through D-AIVD)
• LATAM (registrations from D-AIVG through D-AIVJ)
• Hainan Airlines (registrations from D-ABPA through D-ABPE)

All three configurations are in a one-to-one setup with direct aisle access; however, they differ in the seat design they are based on.

The Ex-Philippine Airlines A350-900s are fitted with Thompson Vantage XL older-generation seats, while the Ex-LATAM A350s are fitted with the Stelia Solstys and the Ex-Hainan Airlines are fitted with the Collins Super Diamond in a reverse herringbone seat layout.

So, in essence, make sure to check carefully the route and which aircraft usually operates the sector to be prepared for the product that you will be experiencing on board. It can vary massively depending on which aircraft and which configuration you end up flying on.