Exploring innovation on the ground at Munich Airport – Aboard Lufthansa’s Flying Lab
In this adventure
- A call from Germany
- Off to Heathrow T2. Wait. Terminal 2??
- LH2473 London Heathrow to Munich Airport
- Exploring innovation on the ground at Munich Airport
- LH424 Munich to Boston with Lufthansa and Recaro Aircraft Seating
- Into Boston, The Holiday Inn Bunker Hill
- Exploring Boston
- Robot and Bowl Food – Exploring Spyce… and lessons for the Passenger Experience?
- Oodles of Noodles – Pho and Ramen in Boston
- The APEX Conference and Expo – What you missed
- Back to Boston Logan International airport
- LH423 Boston Logan to Frankfurt-am-Main
- The joy of Frankfurt Airport
- LH924 Frankfurt to Heathrow… with a neo
- Train? Thataway
- The outlook for the next six months
Writers note: Apologies for the delay in getting this trip report going. It seems I can only focus on writing trip report at once however much I try and juggle things. The good news is that it’s given me more time to run this through Grammarly, and ensure this thing makes more sense than it did in the past.
With that said, this is my writing… so I have disagreements to say the least with my editing software.
We now return you to your featured programme.
Exploring innovation on the ground at Munich Airport
With me off the plane, I headed out to the rather clean and expansive terminal.
Lufthansa Airbus A380 – Munich. Rather appropriate…
On the way, I caught up with Mary-Ann of APEX, who would be joining us on the flying lab. We both caught up with life events, before splitting our ways to do separate things. She wanted to check a few things pre-flights…
And me? I wanted a new bag.
Airbus A330’s in Kinder Eggs? Check.
“Happy Germany”… ummm.
Let me elaborate. My current Lufthansa TravelTek bag has been doing sterling service since 2015, but it has… seen better days. My hope was that WorldShops air-side would have better bag selections, and maybe I could replace one of my normal carry on bags.
A quick check in the non-Schengen branch (pier L) showed they had no bags.
Mehr Bags bitte.
Tempting.
However, I was told they had bags in the Schengen branch (pier K)… which was one level down.
No problem. Whilst Brexit and the joys of a possible no-deal exist currently – for now I could put my passport in the automated passport machines, and cross into Germany. In less than 10 seconds flat.
I descended into the Schengen terminal and sought out my target – the WorldShop at the K gates. And I found it after a little hunting.
And lo and behold. They had bags.
Sadly, I couldn’t see a side bag as I had before, but I found something just as good.
A backpack.
Shot much later down the line.
Sorry side bag, you’re going to have to do more active service for a bit (and you’re plenty capable), but welcome Lufthansa Backpack. In proper Lufthansa colours. None of this silver colours malarkey. Blue and yellow if you please.
Lufthansa Airbus A330.
I headed back to the non-Schengen section, and cleared the border out of Europe, and prepared for the upcoming flight – to run into my sponsors from Recaro.
With greetings and formalities done and dusted, we cleared the security checks for USA bound flights.
Those complete, it was time to head to the gate, where the preflight party was in full swing, where I got to meet presenters from the flight (including people from T-Mobile, LH Systems, Panasonic Aerospace, Recaro, and Airbus), as well as industry colleagues (including the one and only John Walton)
VR Ducks (well more like Allosky Skylights ducks!)
VR Duck.
Because if you want to know the way the bubbles or interesting items – follow the purple hair You can’t go far wrong.
LH Systems were also demonstrating how they use Softbank’s Pepper Robot as an assistant for passengers.
Pepper at work.
It’s interesting to see how companies are utilising the latest technology on the ground. Yes, there will be sticklers (like your writer) who will insist on paper boarding passes, but there are times when modern tools and technology.
As well as LH Systems showing off Pepper, AlloSkies were showing off their VR headset and Feelflight showing its human centric blanket for passenger wellness
After a short presentation by Olivier Krueger of LH Systems, and Joe Leader of the APEX association, it was time to board the plane
Joe Leader, APEX (left) and Olivier Krueger, LH Systems (Right)
The waiting A350.
With a full flight heading out on LH424 that day, it was a bit of a queue at the gate, with First and Business passengers having their own boarding area, whilst those in Premium Economy and Economy Class got to share a boarding gate.
Just before boarding commenced…
There’s more than a little bit of a queue now.
I blipped my boarding pass, and the gate bell went off. Had I been upgraded?
.. Nope. I had been seat shifted to 12E. Still stuck in the middle seat.
With the seat set – it was time to board the L424 – The Flying Lab.
FULL DISCLOSURE: Recaro Aircraft Seating kindly invited Economy Class and Beyond, as a guest on the Lufthansa Flying Lab, as well as paying for the flights as part of this.
Economy Class and Beyond attended Apex Expo and Aircraft Interiors Expo North America’s as a media delegate
All opinions and thoughts are the author’s own, and are not directed by Recaro Aircraft Systems, Lufthansa Systems, APEX or Aircraft Interiors Expo.
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