Plane Configurations - Out of Curiosity
 

My upcoming flight gives me an excuse to ask a general info question I've always wanted to ask:

We'll be flying on a 340-600 (Lufthansa) from Denver to Frankfurt next week. So I went to Seat Guru and noticed there are two 340-600 plane configuration links. Back to Lufthansa's site and I also see two 340-600 plane configurations for their long-haul flights How do I know which one it is?

Is there any rule of thumb on how to figure out which configuration of plane you're flying when there's more than 1 listed for the same plane type/number?

It's not that I'm picky, but more curious.

In the specific case you cite, it's easy: one configuration has first class and the other doesn't. LH sells F seats on their DEN-FRA route, so DEN-FRA always has the configuration w/F.

Otherwise when there are multiple configurations, if you have access to a seat map for your flight, you can compare that seat map to the various configurations. <Insert usual disclaimer about airlines occasionally changing a/c for operational reasons at the last minute./>

rizzuto - O.K. I confess I keep thinking there's got to be another answer (while yours was good) out there too because (1) it sounds like I'd have to try and find out if the flight was offering first class (assuming I didn't already know it) and (2) in this case, no I did't have access to the seat map as I'm not a Lufthansa FF flyer. So I guess my general question remains even though you answered (thanks!) the one for the specific flight!

You can't really know for sure until you get on a flight. Airlines can and do substitute equipment when necessary for various reasons.

patandhank -

I wish I knew. I have this same question everytime I fly on Singapore Air - they have two versions of the 747-400, three versions of the 777-200 and two versions of the 777-300 listed on Seat Guru.

Sometimes you can get a hint from the explanation at the top of the page on Seat Guru, which mentions the routes certain planes are flown on, but more often than not, the explanation is the same for all versions.

I try to get around this by selecting a seat that I'll be happy with regardless of version of aircraft, OR I call the airline and try to get specifics directly from them. It can all go by the wayside though, due to last minute aircraft changes, etc.

If there's another way, I'd love to know about it.

patandhank - you don't have to be LH ff to see their seat maps. It takes about 3 steps to find them on their web site. And it's certainly easy to find out what classes a flight is selling - try and make a reservation for a particular class; you'll find out quickly whether that class is offered on a particular flight/route.

Every DEN-FRA nonstop flight next week is on the A340-600 marked as version 1 on Seatguru (i.e. where the first row of coach is row 26.)