- Lufthansa plans to rent out additional short-haul flight paths to other airlines.
Lufthansa is planning to delegate more short-haul flights from its primary operations to other airlines, while maintaining quality. This applies to both internal operations like subsidiaries Discover and City Airlines, as well as an external wet-lease provider, as per Lufthansa's airline chief Jens Ritter in Frankfurt. In aviation, wet-lease refers to leasing an aircraft along with its crew.
A preferred partner is yet to be finalized and will primarily handle flights during the summer, Ritter mentioned. The rationale behind this is the surge in demand during the high vacation season, given the significant decline in business travelers. Lufthansa requires an additional 25 planes during the summer compared to winter.
Ritter didn't disclose a partner, but Airbaltic, the Latvian airline currently serving various Lufthansa subsidiaries including the main brand with its modern A220 aircraft, seems like a possible choice. Also, Airbaltic is on the lookout for staff for its new locations at Lufthansa's hubs in Vienna, Munich, and Brussels.
Expansion of Short and Medium-haul Fleet
It's projected that the short and medium-haul fleet for Lufthansa's core brand will expand from its current around 220 to 250 aircraft by 2027/28, based on "Handelsblatt" reports. Ritter stated that 40% of these jets, or 100 aircraft, will then operate outside Lufthansa Classic. This has already stirred up intense disagreements with the core workforce, represented by the UFO and Cockpit unions. The company anticipates that this strategy will lead to reduced operational expenses for its major airline, which has recently incurred substantial losses.
CFO Jörg Beißel cited the cost savings of Chinese airlines, which opt for the shorter route via Russian airspace over European ones, as a reason for lower fare pressure towards the Far East. In Atlantic traffic, Lufthansa is affected by the fact that US firms are increasingly flying tourists directly to traditional vacation spots like Greece, reducing connecting passengers.
The Commission will need to evaluate any potential partnership between Lufthansa and a wet-lease provider, given the regulatory framework around airline collaboration. The Commission, which oversees fair competition in the European aviation market, will closely scrutinize the agreement to ensure it complies with antitrust rules.
With the additional 25 planes required during the summer, The Commission may also examine if the increased fleet size could lead to market dominance, potentially leading to unfair pricing or reduced choices for passengers.
