Our Reviews

Pros
Low Cost, On Time, good service

Cons
Business Class not comparable to other airlines’ business class, flight attendants who don’t speak good english

Review
In the interest of saving my employer some money, I decided to take LTU International Airlines when traveling from New York to Düsseldorf, Germany. A round-trip business class ticket cost me a little under $3,000 as compared to $9,000 on Northwest, the only other carrier that flew direct to Düsseldorf.

Boarding was uneventful; Most of my fellow passengers were holidayers from Germany who were returning home. We had an on time departure, which was not abnormal for an international flight (unlike domestic flights in the U.S.), but we sat on the runway for ages because of air-traffic delays. Luckily, in Business Class, the flight attendants constantly pampered us with drinks and snacks. I must note here that of the 3 flight attendants in our section, only one spoke passable English. The others communicated only in German, much to my consternation.

For the meal, a tablecloth was placed on our trays (standard in Business Class in all airlines but the tray is usually sturdier. This was a regular airline tray) and the meal was brought out in three courses. However, the meal itself was something like what one can get in a Singapore Airlines flight in the economy section. I suppose that says a lot about Singapore Airlines. . But I will admit that the meal was served with great aplomb and our drinks were constantly refreshed.

The leather seats reclined more than an economy class seat and was certainly wider with a lot more legroom. However, they were certainly not comparable to the business class seats in airlines such as British, Lufthansa or Northwest for that matter. I suppose it’s too much to expect in a discount carrier, but I must make this point clear (since it’s a business class ticket I was flying on).

The entertainment system was reasonable…for a discount airlines. But not having an on-demand entertainment system for a trans-Atlantic business class flight was quite sad. But there was a choice of 10 movie channels or so and I have to admit that I was not un-entertained. But once again, not up to the standards of a regular airline.

Baggage at my destination was brought out promptly with priority service ending a decent experience but not one that could be seriously called Business Class.

Summary
LTU’s business class experience is at best comparable to an economy plus at a Singapore Airlines or a British Airways. I guess you get what you pay for. I recommend it for the casual traveler but not for the serious business traveler.