Flying in style with Lufthansa

A revolutionary Business Class seat, a new fleet of the modern A340-600s and a stop-over in Canton (Guangzhou, China) are just among the newest reasons why Filipinos and foreigners from Manila should choose to fly with Lufthansa German Airlines. Passengers flying the airline’s Manila-Canton-Frankfurt route can now enjoy the comforts of the new, spacious Airbus aircraft and experience the Business Class seat that converts into a private bed (for Business Class pax). They may also opt to explore the Chinese city of Canton before proceeding to their destination in Europe. In a recent press conference that launched these innovations and change in route structure, Lufthansa general manager for RP/Guam/Micronesia Christopher Zimmer said these new services are designed to set new standards in air travel, and affirm the airline’s commitment to excellence.

Lufthansa is one of a few airlines in the Philippines that make daily flights to Europe. Although it offers almost the same rates in airfare, frequent travelers claim Lufthansa is better off than its competitors when it comes to punctuality of flights, service and arrival time. Lufthansa arrives in Europe (Frankfurt) at a more ideal hour at 7:15 a.m. while a competitor arrives at 6 a.m.

As for its Business Class seat, Lufthansa also boasts of more improved and complete features compared to that of other international airlines. Found on Business Class on all flights to and from Manila, the two-meter long seat was dubbed "Private Bed" because of its most important feature - the ability to convert into a bed, with an angle of up to nine degrees to the floor, complete with an integrated fold-away screen that gives one privacy while sleeping or resting.

The state-of-the-art seat is also equipped with a 10.4 personal video screen and laptop connection; Flynet, an inflight Internet service; the Shape System that puts one to a sleeping or sitting position with just a press of a button; and more space with 150 cms of seat pitch (distance between seats).

Designed to make passengers more comfortable and satisfied throughout the flight, the seat also includes an integrated back massage function, retractable armrests that provide ample room for shoulders and arms, "virtual blinkers" on monitors, individual reading lamps, a retractable swiveling worktable that is larger than that of other airlines, storage pockets for laptops and headphones, and a cupboard for shoe storage.

Meanwhile, a high-resolution 10.4-inch screen will make inflight entertainment more enjoyable for passengers. The Media World gives them more access to a wide variety of music, movies, audio books, travel information, language courses, and an extensive menu of games via the modern audio-video on demand (AVOD) system, using new headphones with active noise cancellation.

Zimmer said the inflight service complements these new innovations. Aside from three-star menus and an outstanding wine list, he added that passengers can also look forward to special seasonal or route-specific menus and drinks.

Moreover, as part of the German airline’s thrust to provide better products and service, it has shifted from a fleet of Boeing 747-400 to the Airbus 340-600 for its Manila-Canton-Europe flights, with flight numbers now at LH789 and LH788.

Another significant change undertaken by Lufthansa is its change in route stop-over from Bangkok, Thailand to Canton in China.

Minette Tirona-Corpus, the airline’s marketing manager said Lufthansa decided to pull-out from Bangkok because operations there are not so profitable anymore.

"The Canton operation is more logical than the Bangkok operation. Although it is often fully-booked, Lufthansa was always the wait-list carrier in Bangkok. It had so many economy passengers and was forced to offer the cheapest rates because there were many competitors," she said.

In the Canton route, Lufthansa has more available seats to offer especially to the Pinoy market which is a late booking market, Corpus added.

She also cited the burgeoning outbound market of China as one of the airline’s reasons for choosing Canton as a stop-over destination. Another is its reputation as a tourist destination.

The Chinese call this city Yangcheng (city of goats) while foreigners refer to it as Canton and its people as Cantonese. But it is now more popularly called as Guangzhou.

The capital of Guangdong province, Guangzhou is the largest city in southern China and one of the most modern in the country. It is an industrial center and home to one of China’s principal ports. It lies at the head of the Zhu Jiang (Pearl River) Delta, situated 120 kilometers northwest of Hong Kong and the South China Sea.

Canton is also home to some of China’s great leaders, namely Sun Yat-sen and Chiang Kai-shek.

Twice a year, Guangzhou plays host to the largest foreign trade fairs in China.

A famous historical and cultural city, Guangzhou has many interesting attractions such as the Yuexiu Park, Guangxiao Temple, the Octagonal Flower pagoda in the Temple of the Six Banyan Trees, the Dagoba at the Huaishen Temple, Zhaoqing Seven-Star Rock and the Conghua Hot Spring. The place is also surrounded by flowers, thus it was named "the City of Flowers."

Lufthansa German Airlines has been flying to the Philippines since 1981, catering to a steady market of business travelers and seafarers. With its latest services, it hopes to strengthen position in the local market as well as boost tourist traffic to Germany and vice-versa.