LH462 FRA-MIA

May 28th, 2024

Posts in this series:

Introduction - A Random Jaunt to Europe

Review - Virgin Atlantic Premium Class A330-300 Miami to London Heathrow

Review - JW Marriott Grosvenor House London

Review - Imperial Riding School, Autograph Collection, Vienna

Review - Grand Hotel Kempinski High Tatras

Review - Austrian Airlines Business Class A321 Vienna to Frankfurt

Review - Lufthansa Business Class B747-8 Frankfurt to Miami

In-transit:

We had a pretty short connection in Frankfurt to begin with, and the delayed inbound flight from Vienna only worsened the situation. We sprinted (somewhat) maniacally through the airport to get to our gate, only to find out boarding was delayed by 40 minutes. The bright side, at least, was that we didn’t need to go through security again, and no secondary check for US flights was required when leaving Germany.

We didn’t have time to visit the lounge, but you’re not missing out on much by skipping the Lufthansa lounges.

Boarding:

Boarding eventually commenced after the said delay. It was a beautiful day in Frankfurt, and the plane-spotting was fantastic. Our bird had just arrived from Miami and was turning right around.

Unlike boarding an A380, the jet bridges didn’t actually hook up to the second floor of the B747.

How cool is this vantage?!

At the boarding door, we were greeted and directed to the right.

Lufthansa had business class cabins on both the lower and upper deck. On the lower deck, it was in a 2-2-2 configuration.

We assigned ourselves seats on the upper deck, with a much more intimate 2-2 configuration. To get there, we first had to climb up some stairs. There’s something giddying about stairs in an airplane, in my opinion.

The upper deck only featured a single aisle, so it was more akin to a business class on a narrowbody jet.

On the middle bulkhead, there was a welcome setup with sparkling wine, nuts and pre-batched Avionic cocktails, which were Lufthansa’s new welcome drink. The glasses were covered with napkins. When our lovely flight attendant Noe saw me taking pictures, she took the napkins off and rearranged everything to make sure all was presentable. I knew we were going to have a good flight.

One reason to choose the upper deck over the lower deck was for the side storage bins. Of the 3 European giants, both Air France and British Airways have doors in business class, while Lufthansa doesn’t even provide direct aisle access in the vast majority of its fleet. That is fortunately changing soon with the rollout of the new Allegris cabin. Nonetheless, it’ll be years before a substantial number of planes feature the new seats.

Another reason to choose the upper deck was just how quiet it was. When the four engines were in full thrust, I could barely hear them. I’d say it was on par with the quiet level of an A380.

Seriously, I don’t know where people store their things without these side bins?

There were no individual air nozzles on the B747-8.

A bottle of water and an amenity kit were hidden in a locker under the TV monitor. Although, an amenity kit might be a stretch.

I know the Germans are all about eco, but I think a recyclable bag as an amenity kit was a bit of an overkill. Like I will not be bringing my plastic bottles in this bag to Publix for pfand.

Towards the end of the boarding process, the captain came onto the PA and made his welcome announcement. He explained that our boarding was late because, y’all are not ready for this, the plane was extra filthy coming from Miami, the cleaning crew required additional time. Then I took a look under the footrest, and you don’t say…

Ugh, people in Miami ruin everything.

After we were settled, Noe came over and offered us those drinks we had seen earlier. I had to try the Avionic cocktail. It was alright. I’m sure there was elderflower in there, lol. My partner took a break from drinking all the Austrian wines and just had water.

I perused the business class menu while waiting for pushback, which reads as follows:

I noticed the jet bridge underneath us being retracted, and soon enough we were pushed back.

Lufthansa is the world’s largest operator of passenger B747s, and it was evident at Frankfurt Airport.

Inflight:

During our ascent I checked out the wifi offering. The pricing was on the steeper side, and the speeds were not great.

Lunch was offered after takeoff, which started with a (fifth-degree-burn-inducing) hot towel, not served on a towel dish.

While waiting for apéritif I found the headphones tucked away in the center console. These were permanently wired to the seat and were of decent quality. They were nothing compared to the Bang & Olufsen provided on American Airlines, though.

Around 45 mins into the flight came the apéritif. I chose the Riesling and some sparkling water. These were served with some sun-dried tomatoes, cheese and olives.

Following the drinks were appetizers. I went with the smoked fillet of char with potato salad, red radish and cucumber, while my partner had the tenderloin of beef slices with oyster mushrooms, tomato and pumpkin.

The appetizers were not bad, but damn, the breads were so stale - both the ones from the basket and the one that came with the tray.

Main courses ensued. I tried the white German asparagus with veal steak, sauce Hollandaise and parsley potatoes. I appreciated the use of seasonal ingredient, however, the presentation left quite a bit to be desired. I was dumbfounded by how the veal steak was more leathery than Josh’s momma’s chicken breast.

My partner went with the much more conservative salmon option, which he pre-ordered online.

For desserts, we shared some fruits and the salted caramel tartlet with orange and chocolate soil.

Lunch was concluded an hour later. Each passenger received a box of chocolates from Coppeneur.

I wanted to nap a bit after lunch but struggled to do so. I can’t quite point to exactly what was wrong, but I felt like I could never find an ergonomic position to rest in. The seat lacked both width and padding, and the limited bedding made no enhancements. Business class was fully booked up on our flight, so I wasn’t even able to snag an extra pillow. I would not be pleased to fly this product on a night-time flight.

1.5hrs before arrival, a second meal was provided. The choices were between the smoked duck breast with cauliflower, citrus gel and red onion confit and the tortellini pomodoro mozzarella in tomato and cashew sauce, garnished with roasted cauliflower and sautéed broccolini.

To drink, I asked for the kölsch.

On Arrival:

We touched down at Miami Airport slightly behind schedule, and the Florida summer storm hit us the moment we taxied off the runway. I left with a favorable impression of Lufthansa, albeit everything except service was unremarkable. Kudos to our flight attendant Noe, who had such a great attitude and a bubbly personality. At first I thought she was American, as she spoke flawless American English and was casually informal. She took her time with each passenger, addressed us by name, and I saw her constantly refilling the champagne for this solo lady sitting across from us and chatting with her. I don’t often do this, but since it was my first time on the Queen of the Skies, I asked Noe if I could sneak a peek of the cockpit.

As much as I enjoyed my flight with Noe, I just can’t rationalize how any connecting passenger would choose Lufthansa over Air France or British Airways. Both airlines have far superior catering. BA has nice bedding, AF has better seats, and LH has, really, no edge. Even with the new Allegris cabin, LH still has much to catch up on.