CCO Interview: SWISS's Heike Birlenbach on U.S. Foray

DUBAI — On board flight LX52 to Boston (BOS), SWISS’s (LX) first A350-900 long-haul service, I sat down with Heike Birlenbach, CCO at SWISS. After dinner, the management team hosted a 1:1 interview at the beginning of the brand-new Premium Economy cabin, engaging with national and international reporters.

Recent geopolitical news featured a deal between the United States and Switzerland on reciprocal tariffs. According to The White House, the European country pledged a $200 billion investment into the United States, with a third planned for 2026. The aerospace industry is one of the many cited in the announcement.

“Our fleet planning is closely coordinated within the Lufthansa Group and across all its airlines. Fleet investments are bundled and tendered at the group level, ensuring scale and efficiency. In every decision, we consider strategic priorities as well as long-term operational and economic factors., ” Heike mentioned.

 “Key decisions – including the renewal of our A330 and B777 fleets – will be taken over the coming years. Ultimately, the decision on which airline will receive which aircraft will be made at a later stage. One thing is clear: we rely on Switzerland having a strong and healthy economy. And whenever we can contribute to that, we are glad to do so.”

The Airbus A330s and Boeing 777s will be retrofitted with the new SWISS Senses cabin, which is expected to remain in service for many years. The Airbus A350 is replacing the A340-300. On the matter, Heike commented:

“The reason why we will keep the A340s for a while is to ensure our network continuity. As the Airbus A330s enter the refurbishment plan, estimated to take about six to eight weeks per aircraft, we do not want to reduce our operations or network in the early stages. The A340 will be kept until the retrofit of the A330 fleet is finalized.”

The Airbus A330 is expected to stay in LX’s fleet for at least another ten years. Heike has not ruled out a potential reshuffle of the Lufthansa group fleet, with other operators taking over the A330 subfleet.

“It could also be that some others, either in the group or outside, have a demand for that aircraft type. We always take a holistic view across all airlines of the group and aim for an optimum distribution, based on market needs, Hub capabilities and other factors.

Both the A330s and B777s will receive the same passenger accommodation layout (LOPA), with minor modifications required to adapt the SWISS Senses product. For instance, the Economy Class section on the Boeing 777-300ER will feature a standard 3-4-3 layout, unlike the 3-3-3 on the Airbus A350-900. There will also be 40 Premium Economy Class seats, 50 Business Class seats, and six to eight First Class suites.

LX is one of the few airlines in the world to feature a First Class product on board all its widebody fleet. Commenting on a potential second row of First Class cabin on some routes, Heike told me:  

“First-class demand really depends on the destination. And not all destinations that we fly to have a high demand. There are destinations where we could easily fill a second row of First Class, as opposed to one as planned in the refurbishment of the A330. However, that would sacrifice the seating space in Business Class, and we need a large Business Class to meet the high demand as well.

We have already decided on the A350 and A330 fleet configurations. We will have one row of First Class, followed by a row of Business Class. As you can see, the A350 is equipped with two rows of Business Suites, each comprising eight seats. Space-wise, the product is similar to First Class.”

One additional Airbus A350-900 will join LX between the end of 2025 and early 2026. Three more are set to arrive before the end of 2026, with the first expected in Q3. Overall, LX expects to operate a fleet of five Airbus A350s by the end of 2026.