September 5, 2024, 10:06 am | Read time: 2 minutes
In summer 2021, Lufthansa abolished their free drinks offer in Economy Class. However, this apparently had a negative impact on customer satisfaction. The German airline is therefore currently testing in several phases whether drinks such as coffee, cola, beer, or wine will be served free of charge on board again in the future.
A packet of potato chips or cookies, accompanied by a cup of tomato juice or a beer. Passengers in Economy and Economy Premium Class used to look forward to this complimentary offering from Lufthansa. Even on short-haul flights, there was at least one free drink and a small snack. But that came to an end in mid-2021. Lufthansa ended the offer of free drinks on board and introduced the so-called Onboard Delights Service instead. Since then, food and drinks in Economy Class on short and medium-haul routes have been subject to a charge.
Return of free drinks on some Lufthansa flights
In a nod to customer satisfaction, the airline is contemplating the revival of complimentary drinks. This will be for its short and medium-haul European routes. “To this end, we offered free coffee and tea on various routes in July,” said Lufthansa spokesperson Jörg Waber when asked by TRAVELBOOK.
And they want to go one step further. “In September, we will offer the full range of beverages including soft drinks, wine and beer on selected routes,” said Waber. Under this new approach, the Onboard Delights menu that incurs a charge will be limited to snacks and fresh food selections on these flights. According to Waber, customer satisfaction analyses will be used to evaluate how the return of the free drinks offer is received by Lufthansa passengers.
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Downgraded by Skytrax
The test runs with free drinks on board could also be related to Lufthansa’s rating by Skytrax. The renowned British consulting and rating company awarded the German airline 5 stars for the first time in 2017. A success that had previously only been reserved for a few airlines, mainly from Asia and the Middle East. However, following removal of the free drinks offer in 2021, Lufthansa was stripped of its coveted fifth star by Skytrax. The downgrade was primarily due to the perceived decline in the quality and variety of in-flight meals and beverage options on long-haul flights. Within the specific subcategories of ‘Complimentary meals/snacks’ and ‘Complimentary drinks’ on short-haul flights, Lufthansa managed to secure only 0.5 stars.