Lufthansa A380 is approaching Asia-Pacific

Today, Lufthansa announced that Tokyo and Beijing will be the first destinations of scheduled flight services of the airline's new flagship, the Airbus A380. Johannesburg in South Africa will be the third A380 destination for the German airline. Lufthansa was the first European airline to fly into the region on a venturesome first expedition flight to China in 1926. Today the airline group, including Swiss and Austrian Airlines has emerged as the leading carrier to Europe, serving more Asian gateways, European hubs and destinations and attracting more Asian customers, than any other carrier from Europe. "Now, we have decided, that two out of three first Lufthansa A380 destinations will be in the Asia-Pacific region"' says Uwe Mueller, Vice President Asia-Pacific of Lufthansa German Airlines. "Our commitment to our customers, partners and many thousand employees in this region and our confidence in the ongoing positive development of the markets here could not be stronger."

As of June 12 Lufthansa will start regular A380 flights from Tokyo Narita to Frankfurt. From August 26, Lufthansa will fly the A380 from Beijing to Frankfurt. On both routes the A380 will initially fly three times weekly, replacing the existing daily Boeing B747 operations on those three days. Daily A380 connection is planned, when the third and fourth A380 aircraft join the Lufthansa fleet in a few weeks time.

Lufthansa will take the delivery of its first A380 aircraft on May 19. The first long haul flight of the new fleet member will be a special flight to Johannesburg on June 6, when Lufthansa flies the German national football team and a group of supporters to the FIFA world cup 2010 in South Africa. The first regular scheduled flight will take place on June 11 from Frankfurt to Tokyo. "We are very excited to receive our new flagship now. We are especially pleased, to be able to offer the new aircraft first of all to our customers from Asia and via our code share connections on partner airlines to Tokyo and Beijing also to our many customers from other markets of the region, including Australia and New Zealand", says Uwe Mueller.

Lufthansa's A380 offers unprecedented feeling of space

Lufthansa's Airbus A380 has 526 seats in the best and most modern service classes offered by the airline. The completely new First Class, with eight generous seats on the upper deck, promotes a sense of individuality. The revamped Business Class, with 98 seats on the upper deck, and Economy Class, with 420 seats on the main deck, provide unprecedented comfort and an impressive feeling of space.

Numerous airports worldwide are currently upgrading their facilities in preparation for the A380. At Frankfurt, passengers will generally board the Lufthansa A380 on two levels. This year, Lufthansa expects to take delivery of four Airbus A380s.

Dedicated Lufthansa A380 website allows exclusive insights

Visitors to the dedicated website www.lufthansa.com/A380 can obtain the latest flight information in various languages, including Japanese, Mandarin, Cantonese and Korean, book a flight with the A380 and find inspiration and ideas for trips to the first Lufthansa A380 destinations. Film clips will convey the flair of these cities and provide special travel tips to encourage visitors to explore further for themselves. Users can also add their own personal travel recommendations.

In addition, the website gives exclusive insights into the A380, including a virtual tour of the aircraft and a virtual flight. Photos and interesting facts and reports on the development of the first component through to the completion of the Lufthansa A380 round off the information relating to the airliner. Fascinating online games and atmospheric backgrounds also provide entertainment. The Lufthansa A380 Shop offers exclusive items for fans - before their first flight on the A380 or as souvenirs of their trip.