Trip Report: Lufthansa (A340-300) Business FRA-BOS

The Details

Flight: LH422
Aircraft: A340-300
Class: Business
Seat: 4A and 4C
Route: Frankfurt Main (FRA)-Boston Logan (BOS)
Distance: 3,810 miles
Duration: 8hrs 27min
Departure: 11:52AM
Arrival 2:19PM

The Preflight

After arriving from our connecting flight from Prague, we had a three-hour layover in Frankfurt. We quickly made our way from the Schengen area to the border checkpoint for flights to Non-Schengen countries. There were different lanes marked for Economy, Business, and First class passengers. However, there was no enforcement and simply a mass of people trying to get into any line that was open. It took us about 20 minutes before passing this line.

Once we got to the non-Schengen area, we headed towards the Lufthansa Business Lounge Z gates. There was again another line for COVID documents (negative COVID-19 test or vaccination card)

We were directed upstairs to the Business Lounge. Immediately upon getting off the escalator was the buffet area.

Cold food options included oats, fruit, and pretzels. The cheese pretzels were amazing…

There were a few espresso machines spread throughout the lounge.

Snacks included nuts, dried fruit, and chips.

Hot options included scrambled eggs and baked beans.

Carb options included warmed croissants and cold bread.

A selection of cold cuts and cheese was also offered.

Drinks included water, Coke Zero, beer, and juice. There was also beer on tap along with a few wines.

There was a bundt cake for dessert.

The lounge was incredibly packed with very few couches available for seating. It took us a while to find two sofas next to each over.

Views of the apron were restricted by bars on the window. There was a great lineup of Lufthansa heavies prior to the morning bank to the United States including A340s and B747s.

90 minutes prior to our scheduled boarding time of 10:30AM, lounge staff made announcements that the COVID document check line for departure was getting long and we should make our way to that line. My fiance and I decided to wait another 10 minutes before leaving the lounge which turned out to be a good idea. There was a snaking line of a few hundred passengers trying to get past the COVID document check. It took us nearly an hour to get through the document check and got to the gate area just a few minutes before boarding was scheduled to begin.

Our aircraft was a beautiful A340-300, registration D-AIGT, which was delivered brand new to Lufthansa in December of 1999. She was 22 years old but sporting the new Lufthansa livery.

I had never flown aboard the A340-300 before and I was excited to check off a new aircraft. Rather than fly directly home to Chicago, we elected to fly through Boston and then on to Chicago to fly this plane.

Boarding began at exactly 10:30AM. Business-class and Star Alliance Gold passengers were invited to board first.

The Flight

There were a total of 30 business class seats in a single cabin between the first and second set of doors. This version of the A340-300 also had 28 Premium Economy and 221 Economy seats.

Seats were arranged in a 2-2-2 configuration. The seats in the window side were arranged facing outward while the seats in the middle faced one another.

We were seated in 4A and 4C in the second to last row of the cabin. Each seat offered a standard 20.5 inches of width and 64 inches of pitch.

There was a fairly average-sized entertainment screen which was not a touch screen. I had to use the IFE remote to move the target reticle over the options I wanted to select… very annoying.

There was a good inflight map.

Below the entertainment screen was a literature pocket with a safety card.

There was also a small storage bin which was where the water bottle and amenity kit were stored.

The one nice feature of these seats was that the footwell was unrestricted. I could sleep sideways without having my feet limited to a cubby. This was also much nicer than the B747-8I business seats where the feet were angled toward each other.

Each seat also had a coat hook and even a glasses hook which I appreciated.

The center console had individual spaces to place drinks. Seat controls were also built into the armrest. Options included the ability to adjust the firmness of the seat in addition to basic functions such as recline and lumbar support.

Underneath the armrest was where the tray table and IFE remote was stored.

The tray table could be folded outwards length-wise.

Below the center console were two USB ports. One did not work… Surprisingly, there were no power outlets.

On the window side of the seat were an adjustable armrest and a small storage bin where the headphones were bolted into the seat.

A large comfortable pillow was waiting for us at the seat along with a thick but fluffy blanket.

The headphones were noise-reducing but not very comfortable around the ears.

The amenities came in a re-usable bag. Contents included a toothbrush, toothpaste, mint, socks, hand cream, and lip balm.

Once we were seated, flight attendants came by with pre-departure beverages. Choices were sparking wine, still water, or orange juice.

A nice large bottle of water was also provided at the seat.

Menus were also passed out.

At 10:53AM boarding was completed and the doors closed. Unfortunately, there was a cargo delay and we eventually pushed back 26 minutes after our scheduled departure around 11:36AM.

Our taxi took about 20 minutes due to the heavy traffic. On our way, I had a great view of a majestic B747-400.

Finally, at 11:51AM we took off from runway 7C bound for Boston.

We had a great view of both Frankfurt Airport and downtown Frankfurt.

Once we reached cruising altitude, the purser came to introduce herself to my fiance and me. She also asked what we would like to drink.

I had a glass of the Duval Leroy Brut champagne along with still water. A ramekin of almonds was also served.

We soon crossed over the English Channel.

Lunch was served forty minutes after take-off. Both the appetizer and the main course were served on one tray. My fiance had the marinated beef appetizer along with the corn-fed chicken. The chicken was flavorful and the side of creamy barley was delicious as well.

The marinated beef came with pickled mango and celery which were very tasty.

I had the spiced salmon with avocado mousse which was OK. My main of cod was cooked perfectly and also delicious.

For dessert, my fiance got the vanilla ice cream with delicious chocolate pebbles.

I had an excellent cheese plate with sesame honey chutney along with an espresso. Perfect.

Chocolate truffles were handed out at the conclusion of the main lunch service.

Most passengers napped after the lunch service however I stayed up for a bit to watch the new James Bond movie No Time to Die.

I eventually try the bedding onboard which was comfortable enough for a trans-Atlantic business class during the daytime. My fiance managed to nap the majority of the flight. Because there were no individual air vents, the cabin was also uncomfortably hot.

The business class lavatory was incredibly sparse. Besides the hand lotion, it was indistinguishable from an economy lavatory.

Most of our journey across the Atlantic was with thick clouds covering the ocean.

An hour and twenty minutes before arrival, another warm meal was served. This time, the breadbasket included hot pretzels. My fiance had the German roast beef with potato salad which was excellent.

I had the palak paneer with chana masala as well as a piece of roti. This Indian dish was incredibly tasty and one of the best curries I’ve had in the air. I had a great amount of heat and flavor all packed together. Dessert consisted of roasted almond cream with caramel sauce.