After being grounded and thought to be at the end of its operating lifespan for over three years, German flag carrier Lufthansa has finally revived some of its Airbus A380s back to active service again for this year's summer and winter schedule. And at this time of writing, one of the superjumbos is already flying its first flight after the pandemic.
From Munich to Boston on the Airbus A380
The Airbus double-decker in question is registered D-AIMK, which previously sat baking in Teruel Airport in Spain until about six months ago when Lufthansa ferried it back to Frankfurt Airport. Since then, the nine-year-old aircraft underwent several maintenance checking procedures by Lufthansa Technik at Manila's Ninoy Aquino International and test flights to ensure it was in its required and best condition for today, June 1st.
And today proved to be extraordinary for D-AIMK as the aircraft was the first to officially kickstart Lufthansa's Airbus A380 summer program after departing from its base at Munich Airport. Deployed as flight LH 424, the aircraft took off just over an hour ago at approximately 16:01 and is currently about six hours away from landing at Boston Logan International Airport.
Operating from the flight deck of this maiden flight were Lufthansa's Airbus A380 fleet Chief Martin Hoell and Captain Raimund Mueller, and Hoell celebrated today by saying:
"We are delighted to be taking the Airbus A380 back into scheduled service today. It is a great honor to perform the maiden flight."
The return of the Airbus A380 also allows Lufthansa to offer passengers enhanced premium offerings, with eight first class seats in a 1-2-1 configuration, 78 business class seats in a 2-2-2 configuration, 52 premium economy seats in a 2-4-2 configuration, 371 economy class seats in a 3-4-3 configuration. And if the premium offerings were not enough, Lufthansa presented some sweet treats for today's passengers and crew before departing from Munich.
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Transatlantic routes for the superjumbo
With passenger services finally resuming with the Airbus A380s, where else will Lufthansa be deploying these widebodies to? For this year's summer schedule - which happens from June 1st to October 27th, the airline will use the Airbus A380s to replace its older and smaller Airbus A340-600s to fly daily from Munich to Boston.
Click here for Munich-Boston flights.
Then from July 4th to October 27th, a similar replacement situation will happen as Lufthansa will deploy the superjumbos on daily flights to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport.
Click here for Munich-JFK flights.
The flight schedules for these summer routes are as follows:
Flight number |
Departure time |
Arrival time |
Frequency |
LH 424 (MUC - BOS) |
15:35 |
17:50 |
Daily |
LH 425 (BOS - MUC) |
20:05 |
09:15 +1 |
|
LH 410 (MUC - JFK) |
11:55 |
14:55 |
Daily |
LH 411 (JFK - MUC) |
17:25 |
07:15 +1 |
As for this year's winter schedule, the Star Alliance is currently looking to deploy the Airbus A380s to operate daily flights from Munich to Los Angeles International Airport from October 5th to March 30th next year. This route is currently being operated by the airline's more fuel-efficient Airbus A350-900s.
Another Airbus A350 route to be swapped by the bigger widebody will be from Munich to Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport, whereby daily flight services will begin from October 28th till March 30th next year. The flight schedules for the winter routes are as follows:
Flight number |
Departure time |
Arrival time |
Frequency |
LH 452 (MUC - LAX) |
12:00 |
15:15 |
Daily |
LH 453 (LAX - MUC) |
17:30 |
13:40 +1 |
|
LH 772 (MUC - BKK) |
22:20 |
14:55 +1 |
Daily |
LH 773 (BKK - MUC) |
23:40 |
05:50 +1 |
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More routes on the horizon
By the end of this year, Lufthansa looks to operate four Airbus A380s out of Munich, with plans to add at least two more of the double-decker by the end of next year. The reinstatement of the aircraft type - similar to the return of the airline's Boeing 747s, is to help the airline with its capacity constraints in light of rising passenger demand and supply chain disruptions causing aircraft delivery delays.
With these in mind, more routes for the Airbus A380s are likely on the horizon. If Lufthansa is following a similar pattern, then the routes are possibly those currently being operated by its Airbus A340-600s or Airbus A350-900s. But only time will tell to see where else the superjumbos could be flying next.
What do you think of the return of Lufthansa's Airbus A380s, and where else would you like to see the widebody be deployed? Let us know in the comments below.