Opening a new chapter in Indian aviation, Lufthansa's Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental touched down for the first time in the country at 0035 on Tuesday.
A grand water canon salute welcomed the arrival of this new aircraft at Terminal 3 of Delhi's India Gandhi International Airport.
Lufthansa is the global launch customer for the latest avatar of the legendary family of Jumbo Jets. Delhi is the second destination worldwide to receive the B747-8.
Passengers on the inaugural flight from Frankfurt witnessed how state of the art aircraft technologies maximize in-flight comfort, by reducing cabin noise by 30 per cent for example.
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Lufthansa flies world's newest aircraft to India
Lufthansa's new Business Class features ergonomically optimised seats which convert into a 1.98 metre-long full-flat bed at the push of a button.
A special air cushion assures unparalleled comfort while sitting. Lufthansa's contemporary Business Class cabin design creates an enhanced sense of space and privacy using a V-shaped seating layout.
This virtually doubles the distance between two neighbouring seats at shoulder level. Passengers also enjoy an enhanced in-flight entertainment system with larger 15-inch monitors and noise reducing Sennheiser headsets.
Travellers on the main deck of the nose section, were treated to luxury at its peak in "the quietest First Class in the world".
Economy Class passengers too enjoyed the new seats with large increase in individual space with 5-7 cms more legroom and 52 centimetre wide seats.
The storage area, head space and the in-flight entertainment system have also been enhanced in all three classes.
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Lufthansa flies world's newest aircraft to India
The B747-8 sets new standards for comfort and efficiency. It builds upon the Boeing 747 series.
The significantly improved aerodynamics of the wings, newly developed wingtips and GEnx-2B engines achieve a 15 per cent improvement in fuel efficiency and CO2 emissions per passenger and a 30 per cent reduction in noise emissions.
The aircraft is configured with 8 First Class, 92 Business Class and 262 Economy Class seats.
Since the beginning of June, Lufthansa's first B747-8 has been deployed on the Frankfurt-Washington route, also a popular connection from India.
After taking delivery of the second B747-8 joining Lufthansa's fleet, the Frankfurt - Delhi route has now been added.
A further two B747-8 are scheduled for delivery in 2012. Among the destinations that Lufthansa will serve with them is Bengaluru. Lufthansa has ordered a total of 20 B747-8.
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