Lufthansa orders A350s and 787s

Widebody jets are the backbone of long-haul airlines — the planes that decide which routes you can fly profitably for the next 20 years. That is why Lufthansa’s new order matters more than the raw headline number suggests. On May 11, 2026, the group approved 20 more long-haul aircraft: 10 Airbus A350-900s and 10 Boeing 787-9s, with deliveries planned for 2032 through 2034. (newsroom.lufthansagroup.com) Basically, this is not a sudden pivot. It is Lufthansa doubling down on a two-supplier strategy while it keeps replacing older, less efficient aircraft. ### What did Lufthansa actually buy? Lufthansa Group bought an even split — 10 A350-900s from Airbus and 10 787-9 Dreamliners from Boeing. The company put the combined list price at $7.7 billion, though airlines almost never pay full list price after discounts and financing deals. (newsroom.lufthansagroup.com) Lufthansa says the aircraft will be assigned to specific airlines and hubs later, so this is a group-level fleet decision first and an operating-plan decision second. ### Why split the order? Because Lufthansa already knows both aircraft families and wants flexibility. The A350-900 and 787-9 are both modern twin-engine long-haul jets with much better fuel burn and lower noise than the older four-engine and early-generation widebodies they replace. Keeping both in the mix also spreads risk. (newsroom.lufthansagroup.com) If one manufacturer slips on deliveries, Lufthansa is not fully trapped. And if route demand changes, the group has more ways to match aircraft to markets. That is the practical logic here — not romance, not flag-waving. ### Is this a brand-new direction? No — and that is the key point people miss. In March 2023, Lufthansa already placed another big widebody order: 10 Airbus A350-1000s, 5 more A350-900s, and 7 Boeing 787-9s. (newsroom.lufthansagroup.com) With that order, the group said it would take delivery of 108 modern long-haul aircraft over the following years. The new May 2026 order extends that same plan rather than rewriting it. ### Why do deliveries start so late? Because widebody production slots are scarce. Airlines are not just shopping for planes they like. They are shopping for planes they can actually get, in the years they need them, with financing they can live with. Lufthansa’s new deliveries are set for 2032 to 2034, which tells you two things at once — demand for these aircraft is strong, and Lufthansa is planning fleet replacement on a very long clock. (newsroom.lufthansagroup.com) ### Why not choose just Airbus? Lufthansa has bought a lot of Airbus widebodies already, including more A350s in 2023. But going all-Airbus would reduce bargaining power and make the airline more exposed to one production system. The same logic applies in reverse for Boeing. A split order keeps leverage on both sides and preserves fleet optionality, even if it also means more complexity in training, maintenance, and parts. (newsroom.lufthansagroup.com) Lufthansa says standardization still improves as it retires older types, so the comparison is not “one fleet type versus two.” It is “fewer old fleets versus a cleaner next-generation mix.” ### What about the 787 cabin mess? That is the awkward backdrop. Lufthansa’s newer Allegris premium cabin rollout has run into certification and seat-availability problems on the 787, while the A350 became the first platform to carry the new product. (newsroom.lufthansagroup.com) But the fresh order shows Lufthansa still wants the 787 in its long-haul future. In other words, the airline is treating those cabin problems as fixable execution issues, not as a reason to walk away from Boeing’s aircraft entirely. ### So what is the real signal? Lufthansa is telling the market that long-haul renewal is still the plan, both manufacturers still matter, and the airline expects premium intercontinental demand to justify decades-long bets. The bottom line is simple — this order is less about today’s routes than about who gets to fly Lufthansa’s network in the 2030s. (onemileatatime.com) (newsroom.lufthansagroup.com)