When Lufthansa introduced its new Allegris business class, the airline also started charging for seat assignments in business class. The logic was that Allegris offers customers a choice of seating options, and that comes at a cost.
Well, Lufthansa has now expanded the concept of charging for seat assignments in business class on long haul flights beyond Allegris, as you’ll now find seat fees on the carrier’s reconfigured (but not with Allegris) Airbus A380s, as flagged by Travel-Dealz.
Lufthansa charging for Airbus A380 business class seats
Lufthansa is currently in the process of retrofitting its fleet of eight Airbus A380s with new business class seats. The airline isn’t installing Allegris business class seats, but instead, is just taking an off the shelf product, in the form of the Thompson Aero Vantage XL product. These seats are in a staggered 1-2-1 configuration, so seats alternate between being closer and further from the aisle.
There’s now an interesting update, as Lufthansa has decided to monetize these different seating options, with a similar naming mechanism to what you’ll find on planes with Allegris cabins. For flights as of September 15, 2026, Lufthansa is starting to charge for seat assignments in A380 business class:
- Lufthansa’s A380 business class now has Privacy Seats, as they’re called, which are the seats closest to the windows, with the letters “A” and “K”
- Lufthansa’s A380 business class now has Extra Long Bed Seats, which are the bulkhead window seats, featuring a larger ottoman
- These seats now come at a fee of up to €170 per sector; Miles & More HON Circle and Senator members, as well as those on Business Flex fares, can assign Privacy Seats for free, while HON Circle members can assign Extra Long Bed Seats for free (elites can’t assign these seats for free on Business Light fares)
I don’t like this, but I guess it’s hard to be too mad?
I’m obviously not at all a fan of the expansion of seating fees in business class, and I also don’t like the way that Lufthansa is constantly finding new ways to brand the same product, in order to extract more revenue.
So this is objectively a negative change, though in fairness, at this point seat fees are becoming the norm on long haul flights operated by major European airlines. British Airways has charged for all business class seats for eons. Air France and KLM have both recently expanded business class seat fees globally, even though most business class seats are virtually identical (as they’re typically reverse herringbone).
At least in the case of Lufthansa, there is a material difference in popularity and comfort between these seats, with the “true” window seats being by far the most popular. So in that sense, I at least prefer only charging for the better seats, rather than simply charging for all seats.
Obviously Lufthansa realizes it would just be unconscionable to charge for business class seats in its old layout, given the 2-2-2 configuration, or else I’m sure it would do that as well.
Bottom line
Lufthansa has now expanded seat assignment fees to its reconfigured Airbus A380s, which feature a staggered (non-Allegris) product. Specifically, the airline is charging up to €170 to assign either the “true” window seats (“Privacy Seats”) or the bulkhead window seats (“Extra Long Bed Seats”).
Of course I hate to see seat fees expand, but this is very much the direction the industry is headed, unfortunately, and Lufthansa isn’t being quite as punitive as some other airlines, at least.
What do you make of Lufthansa’s new A380 business class seat fees?