by Lufthansa Flyer | Jul 12, 2013 | Airlines |
In case you missed my post from June 24, let this serve as a reminder that Lufthansa’s 747-8i will fly to Chicago tomorrow (July 13). This flight is a regularly scheduled flight and will operate as LH 430 from Frankfurt departing at 10:45a Frankfurt time and arrive in Chicago at 12:20p. It will depart Chicago as flight LH 431 at 4:40p and arrive in Frankfurt at 7:35a the following morning.
Boeing 747-8i ‘D-ABYA’ joined the fleet in May 2012 and is nicknamed “Brandenburg”.
The reason for this one-time visit is to demonstrate that the aircraft can safely operate in the tight confines of O’Hare. The FAA and Lufthansa have been discussing bringing the 747-8i to Chicago for several weeks and have agreed to this ‘test-flight’. The 747-8i will be perhaps the largest aircraft ever to visit O’hare. The FAA has had concerns about the 747-8i being able to taxi from O’Hare’s Terminal 5 (International Terminal) to Terminal 1. If you are not familiar with Lufthansa’s operations at O’Hare, their flights arrive from Germany and passengers deplane in Terminal 5 (where immigration/passport control is located). When the plane is emptied, it is taxied to Terminal 1 / Concourse B and is prepared for departure. The issue is the 747-8i’s ability to safely taxi from Terminal 5 to Terminal 1 since there are a few tight corners that have to be navigated between the 2 terminals.
D-ABYD (Lufthansa’s 3rd 747-8i) departing Frankfurt
Lufthansa has held fast to its desire to have their flights depart from Terminal 1 instead of Terminal 5 (as most international carriers operating in O’Hare) because of passenger convenience. Being a Star Alliance member, departing from Terminal 1 makes it very easy for passengers to connect from their United flights to their Lufthansa flights without going through additional security. If the FAA does not approve the 747-8i to use Terminal 1, it would force all passengers arriving to O’Hare on United flights to leave Terminal 1, take a tram to Terminal 5 and be subjected to security for a second time during their travels, making it quite inconvenient and quite honestly, annoying. This is something Lufthansa does not want to happen since it puts additional stress on passengers, especially those with tight connecting times between flights.
No doubt that Lufthansa will be able to demonstrate to the FAA that the 747-8i can operate safely in O’Hare and hopefully lead to the 747-8i to be a permanent fixture in Chicago.
D-ABYG departing Frankfurt
by Lufthansa Flyer | Jul 10, 2013 | Airlines |
Lufthansa has announced that Mexico City (MEX) will become the next destination to see the 747-8
The 747-8i will begin to fly to Mexico city in early September (Sept 5 or 6) and will replace the 747-400 that currently flies the route.
On a side note, this also officially closes my contest for guessing LH’s next non-USA 747-8i destination. Unfortunately no one suspected that it would be MEX!
by Lufthansa Flyer | Jul 8, 2013 | Airlines |
A quick update on what had the potential to be another paralyzing strike for Lufthansa. In a last minute deal, UFO, the union representing germanwings’ cabin crew and airline representatives reach an agreement that will remove the possibility of a strike. A threat of a strike had been looming since employees voted in favor of one, however at this point cooler heads prevailed and there will be no strike. The settlement offer still needs to be voted upon by the union membership however it is expected to be ratified.
by Lufthansa Flyer | Jul 2, 2013 | Airlines |
Lufthansa has just launched a Fall Fare Sale valid for travel between the USA and a variety of European destinations. The most attractive fares tend to be from New York where fares start in the mid $700 range for destinations such as Krakow, Istanbul and Warsaw. Fares from the West Coast start as low as $989 (San Francisco to Copenhagen) and trend upwards into the $1100-$1200 range. The fares are valid for travel between August 25 and October 26, which in my opinion is the best time to visit Europe. Temperatures dip, the tourists have gone home and much better deals can be found as far as hotels and lodging are concerned. The FARE SALE is only in place until July 11.
Terms and conditions apply and are as follows:
Tickets must be purchased by July 11, 2013.
You must depart between August 25 and October 26, 2013.
You must return between September 1 and November 26, 2013.
Tickets must be purchased 14 days ahead of departure (non-issue since fare sale ends 6 weeks before first eligible departure date).
Fares valid for travel on Lufthansa, Austrian, Swiss, Brussels, Air Canada and United (hint: stick with one of the first 4!).
Saturday night stay is required.
Maximum stay is 1 month.
Date changes allowed: $300 per change.
by Lufthansa Flyer | Jul 2, 2013 | Airlines |
This past week saw quite a few updates from Star Alliance members. Most notable was SWISS’ launch of 6 new routes from Geneva. Otherwise most other changes were increases or decreases to existing services. A few minor cancelations came from Air Canada and LOT Polish.
Aegean:
Athens – Cairo effective October 3 will BEGIN 3x/week service.
Athens – London Stansted effective between July 11 and September 16 will operate 3x/week.
Air Canada:
Toronto – Albany effective September 3 is CANCELLED.
Toronto – Grand Rapids effective September 3 is CANCELLED.
Air China:
Beijing – Bangkok effective October 27 will increase from 2x/day to 3x/day.
EVA:
Taipei – Brisbane effective between December 12 and January 10 will increase from 2x/week to 3x/week.
LOT POLISH:
Warsaw – Berlin Tegel (TXL) effective August 1 is CANCELLED.
LUFTHANSA:
Frankfurt – Rzeszow effective September 12 will increase from 6x/week to 11x/week.
SWISS:
Geneva – Belgrade effective December 19 will BEGIN 2x/week service.
Geneva – Gothenburg effective December 14 will BEGIN 2x/week service.
Geneva – London Gatwick effective December 14 will BEGIN 3x/week service.
Geneva – Marrakech effective November 13 will BEGIN 2x/week service.
Geneva – Oslo effective December 14 will BEGIN 3x/week service.
Geneva – Stockholm effective December 15 will BEGIN 4x/week service.
TURKISH:
Istanbul(IST) – Aqaba effective October 27 will increase from 3x/week to 5x/week.
Istanbul(IST) – Hurghada effective October 27 will increase from 3x/week to 1x/DAY.
Istanbul(IST) – Sharm el Sheikh effective October 27 will increase from 4x/week to 1x/day.
UNITED:
San Francisco – Frankfurt effective January 13 will decrease from 1x/day to 6x/WEEK.
PREVIOUS STAR ALLIANCE ROUTE ANNOUNCEMENTS
Courtesy: www.AirlineRoute.net
