Lufthansa Clears Hurdle for New Boeing 787 Allegris Business Class Seats

After months of flying its newest Boeing 787 Dreamliners with a mostly empty premium cabin, Lufthansa has finally received approval to sell the majority of its new Allegris business class seats. The German flag carrier had been hampered by a complex certification process that grounded potential revenue and created an inconsistent passenger experience.

Since introducing the Allegris-equipped Boeing 787-9s in October 2025, the airline was only permitted to sell four of the 28 business class seats on each flight. According to reports from Flight Global and One Mile at a Time, this limitation stemmed from certification challenges with aviation authorities like the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).

The Certification Breakthrough

As of April 15, 2026, Lufthansa can now sell 25 of the 28 Allegris business class seats on its 787 fleet. The resolution marks a significant step forward, allowing the airline to capitalize on the lucrative premium travel market. However, three seats in the second row—specifically 2A, 2K, and 2E—remain uncertified and unavailable for booking, as reported by Simple Flying.

The Allegris cabin, first launched on the airline's Airbus A350s in 2024, features a highly customized and complex design with multiple seating options. This complexity required a separate and lengthy certification process for the Boeing 787 airframe, highlighting an industry-wide challenge as airlines introduce more intricate premium products.

Fleet and Future Plans

Lufthansa currently has eight Allegris-equipped Boeing 787-9 aircraft based at its Frankfurt hub. The airline's strategy involves a significant expansion of its Dreamliner fleet, with plans to operate a total of 29 by the end of 2027 out of a total order for 39 aircraft.

This development is crucial for Lufthansa's fleet modernization, especially amid ongoing delays for other new aircraft. The carrier is the launch customer for the Boeing 777-9, but its first delivery has been pushed back to at least 2027. The ability to fully utilize its 787s provides a much-needed capacity boost and helps standardize its long-haul product offering.

While the certification hurdle for the 787 is now largely overcome, the situation underscores the operational difficulties airlines face when rolling out new cabin products across different aircraft types. Passengers can now look forward to experiencing the new Allegris product on more routes, but the complete vision for a consistent fleet-wide cabin remains a work in progress.

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