Update #35: Gulf airline and airspace volatility, Lufthansa’s 8-month A320 refit, Eurowings’ mid-haul business recliners, Korean Air lounges, and the end of the tourism ad/viral safety video?

Gulf and Asia-Europe flight corridor disruption, more on why Lufthansa’s first A320 refit took so long, detail of Eurowings’ Premium BIZ recliner class for medium-haul, three new lounges at LAX for Korean Air, and another sign the ten-minute viral safety video/tourism board ad is on its way out…

By John Walton 10 min read
FR24 screenshot. Two corridors of flights: one across the Caucasus and into Turkmenistan and one through the middle of Saudi Arabia.

Welcome back to The Up Front Update, at the end of yet another unprecedented week for aviation. 

This week we’ve been working hard behind the scenes on a new series delving deep into the supply chain in advance of the Aircraft Interiors Expo — keep your eyes on your inboxes for more soon.

Discussion has also continued around our feature analysing the finalists for the Crystal Cabin Awards and what they tell you about the state of the industry — including the use of AI sludge in entries (with fake graphs, and nonexistent holographic doctors), plus questions around the categorisation of entries.

We’d love to hear more from you on the topic: please feel free to get in touch with me at john@theupfrontgroup.com with your thoughts.

Now, on to the Update… 

The Up Front UpdateGeopoliticsLufthansaA320MROEurowingsGevenGeven ComodaA320neoKorean AirLoungesLos AngelesSafety
John Walton

Editor in chief of The Up Front, with two decades of experience reporting across the global aviation industry, specialising in business and first class, seats, cabins and the passenger experience.