Lufthansa fare classes explained
Every fare class (RBD — reservation booking designator) on Lufthansa, what it means for award booking, and which classes are most useful to know.
Fare classes by cabin
First Class
| Class | Type | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| F / A | First revenue | Standard revenue first |
| O | First award | Miles & More award first; rarely available to partners |
Business Class
| Class | Type | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| J / C / D / Z | Business revenue | Various revenue business |
| I | Business award | Award business class space |
Premium Economy
| Class | Type | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| G / E / N | Premium economy revenue | Various revenue PE |
| R | Premium economy award | Award PE space |
Economy
| Class | Type | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Y / B / M / U / H / Q / V / W / S / T / L / K | Economy revenue | Various revenue economy |
| X | Economy award | Award economy |
Award fare classes you should care about
For award booking, these are the Lufthansa classes that show inventory:
I (business)R (premium economy)X (economy)
Notes
Lufthansa releases very limited partner award space. First class is essentially never available to partners until ~14 days before departure. Star Alliance partners (UA, Aeroplan, Turkish) need I class for business awards.
Find available award space
AwardLocker shows live availability on Lufthansa and partners — no need to manually check fare classes.
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