Lufthansa will launch three new routes between Germany and the USA next year. Particularly exciting are the two new routes from Frankfurt: Starting in June 2024, there will be multiple weekly flights to the Twin Cities, Minneapolis & St. Paul (Minnesota), as well as Raleigh/Durham Airport (North Carolina).
In a way, with just two airline routes, you can reach four major American cities. Equally interesting is that these are two completely new routes for Lufthansa, which have never been served in the past.
Additionally, a new route from Munich to Seattle has been announced. So far, the metropolis in the northwest of the USA has only been served from Frankfurt.
Boeing 787 from Frankfurt to Minneapolis/St. Paul
From June 4, 2024, Lufthansa will operate five flights a week from Frankfurt to Minneapolis/St. Paul. This route will be served with Boeing 787-9 aircraft, offering a total of 294 seats. With only 26 seats in business class (and 21 in premium economy), the focus here is clearly on economy class (247 seats).
The flight schedule is already available. The route will be operated year-round, including the winter:
- Frankfurt
FRA– Minneapolis/St. PaulMSP: 11:10 – 13:15 - Minneapolis/St. Paul
MSP– FrankfurtFRA: 15:15 – 06:40 (+1)
Condor, the holiday carrier, also offers non-stop flights between Frankfurt and Minneapolis/St. Paul three times a week during the summer schedule. They will use Airbus A330neo aircraft.
Airbus A330 from Frankfurt to Raleigh/Durham
From June 6, 2024, there will also be five flights a week from Frankfurt to Raleigh/Durham International Airport. This route will also be operated year-round, including in the summer and winter flight schedules.
Raleigh and Durham are located in the so-called Research Triangle (the third corner is Chapel Hill). Several universities, as well as industrial and high-tech companies, are based in this metropolitan region. Consequently, there is a larger business class on this route. The Airbus A330-300 aircraft allocated to this route have 42 seats in business class, 28 in premium economy, and 185 in economy class.
The flight schedule is as follows:
- Frankfurt
FRA– Raleigh/DurhamRDU: 10:20 – 13:50 - Raleigh/Durham
RDU– FrankfurtFRA: 15:50 – 06:15 (+1)
There is no competition on this route. However, American Airlines flies daily from Raleigh/Durham to London, and Delta, along with Air France, flies to Paris.
Airbus A350 from Munich to Seattle
The new Munich to Seattle route is also noteworthy, commencing on May 30, 2024. So far, the largest city in the state of Washington has only been served from Frankfurt (using Airbus A330/A340 aircraft).
Unfortunately, Airbus A350 aircraft are used for the Munich to Seattle route, which is the least comfortable aircraft in Lufthansa’s fleet (in economy class). However, things look better up front, especially when the new Allegris Business Class is eventually installed.
The flight schedule for the new route is as follows:
- LH488
MUC–SEA: 15:30 – 16:55 - LH489
SEA–MUC: 18:50 – 13:45 (+1)
Again, Lufthansa has no direct competition on this route, although Condor concurrently flies from Frankfurt.
A380 to Boston, New York, Los Angeles, & Washington
The airline’s upcoming summer schedule also confirmed that Boston, New York, Los Angeles and Washington DC will see regular Airbus A380 services next year, in addition to the non-American airports of Bangkok (ends in March) and Delhi (starts in April). All these flights go to Lufthansa’s secondary hub in Munich.
Conclusion
Good news from Lufthansa. After introducing flights to St. Louis last year, Minneapolis/St. Paul and Raleigh/Durham are two very exciting additions to the route network.
However, if you want to book immediately, you will need to be patient. In a press release from Lufthansa, it is stated that all destinations are immediately available for booking, but as of now, they have not yet appeared in the flight search on Lufthansa.com.
Sources: News Observer (RDU), One Mile at a Time (RDU + MSP) & Port of Seattle
Cover Picture: © andreykr