Category Archives: Lufthansa Group

Lufthansa Group orders 16 additional aircraft

The Supervisory Board of Deutsche Lufthansa AG has approved the order of up to 16 additional aircraft. The list price of the aircraft is approximately 2.1 billion euros. Delivery is scheduled to take place in stages until 2022. The investment plan for the 2018 fiscal year remains unchanged.

The order includes two Boeing 777-300ER long-haul aircraft for Swiss.

Photo: Lufthansa Group.

An additional two Boeing 777F freighters (top) will be ordered for Lufthansa Cargo. The modern freighter aircraft will replace MD-11 cargo planes in the future.

The Supervisory Board has also approved the order of up to twelve short- and medium-haul A320-type aircraft. This includes six delivery options for aircraft of the Airbus A320neo (new engine option) type in 2022 that were converted to fixed orders. When they are delivered, they will replace older aircraft in the flight operations of the Lufthansa Group. Depending on availability, up to six additional A320ceo (current engine option) will be ordered. The plan is to deploy them at Lufthansa this year already, in order to offset delivery delays for Airbus A320neo aircraft.

Top Copyright Photo: Lufthansa Cargo Boeing 777-FBT D-ALFE (msn 41678) YYZ (TMK Photography). Image: 938090.

Lufthansa Cargo aircraft slide show:

Lufthansa Group continues its successful development in the first quarter of 2018

The Lufthansa Group continues its successful path in the first quarter of 2018, and has started well into the new year. The Group’s Network Airlines increased their Adjusted EBIT margin significantly by 3.2 percentage points to 2.4 per cent in what is traditionally the weakest quarter for all airlines. Lufthansa Cargo achieved an even stronger Adjusted EBIT margin improvement: up 4.3 percentage points to 10.1 per cent. These improved earnings were largely offset, however, by significant one-off costs at Eurowings from its growth in the context of the Air Berlin insolvency. As Lufthansa Technik and “Others & Consolidation” showed earnings declining to the levels of earlier years, the total Adjusted EBIT – the main key performance indicator of the Lufthansa Group – increased only slightly by EUR 1 million to EUR 26 million for the first-quarter.

Despite new record numbers of passengers carried and historically high seat load factors, the total revenues of around EUR 7.6 billion (of which EUR 5.8 billion traffic revenues) for the first-quarter were broadly on previous-year level due to the first-time implementation of the new IFRS 15 accounting standard. Without this, first-quarter revenues would have been increased by 4.5 per cent. The net group result for the period improved by EUR 11 million to EUR -57 million.

Fuel costs for the first three months of 2018 virtually remained on prior-year level at EUR 1.2 billion (up 0.9 per cent) since volume growth and higher average prices were compensated by currency effects and successful hedging. Cumulative unit costs excluding fuel and currency factors for the passenger airlines were further reduced by 0.5 per cent (despite the added burden of the one-off costs at Eurowings), thanks to particularly effective cost reductions at the Network Airlines. At the same time, first-quarter unit revenues excluding currency factors increased by 1.2 per cent.

“We remain well on track, and have achieved another good set of results for the first quarter 2018,” says Ulrik Svensson, Chief Financial Officer of Deutsche Lufthansa AG. “Despite incurring high one-off expenses at Eurowings, we again managed to steadily further reduce our unit costs while simultaneously investing in the quality of our product.”

Network Airlines

Adjusted EBIT for the Group’s Network Airlines – Lufthansa German Airlines, Swiss and Austrian Airlines – amounted to EUR 114 million in the first quarter of 2018, EUR 154 million above the prior-year result. The Network Airlines thus made a major contribution to the Group’s good first-quarter result. With a continued high demand, unit costs excluding fuel and currency factors were reduced by 1.9 per cent, while unit revenues excluding currency factors increased by 1.5 per cent. Lufthansa German Airlines raised its Adjusted EBIT by EUR 95 million to EUR 83 million and achieved its highest first-quarter Adjusted EBIT margin of the past ten years. SWISS improved its first-quarter Adjusted EBIT by EUR 64 million to a record EUR 99 million, implying an Adjusted EBIT margin of a good nine per cent and remaining the Group’s most profitable airline. Austrian Airlines saw its first-quarter Adjusted EBIT decline EUR 8 million to EUR 67 million following extensive flight cancellations on three days in the period as a result of works meetings related to wage negotiations.

“Our modernization is paying off,” Ulrik Svensson continues. “We are again in a position to grow our core business profitably. And we are able to grow in those areas where the quality is best for our customers and the costs are low. This is why we saw about a third more growth in first-quarter passenger numbers at our hub in Munich than in Frankfurt.”

The Eurowings Group

Eurowings is growing successfully. Despite a 28.8 percent year-on-year increase in its first-quarter capacity, the airline’s unit revenues excluding currency factors were up 3.5 percent. But with significant one-off costs from the integration of former parts of Air Berlin, first-quarter unit costs excluding fuel and currency factors were 7.6 per cent above their prior-year level. Adjusted EBIT for the Eurowings Group declined EUR 71 million to EUR 203 million. One-off expenses will continue to burden unit cost trends at Eurowings in the months ahead.

Aviation Services

Among the Group’s Aviation Services companies, Lufthansa Cargo continued its positive development, almost doubling its first-quarter Adjusted EBIT to EUR 65 million (an increase of EUR 32 million). Adjusted EBIT for Lufthansa Technik was down EUR 34 million to EUR 103 million, amongst others due to a weak US dollar and an extraordinarily strong first quarter last year. LSG Group raised its first-quarter Adjusted EBIT slightly by EUR 3 million to EUR 1 million. In “Others & Consolidation”, Adjusted EBIT for the first-quarter period declined EUR 83 million to EUR 54 million, which is the level seen in the years before 2017.

Key financial indicators

Operating cash flow remained broadly on its prior-year level. Pension fund provisions were up 8.3 per cent at EUR 5.5 billion, owing largely to the reduction of the discount rate from 2.0 to 1.9 per cent.

Net financial debt declined almost 30 per cent compared to the end of 2017 to EUR 2.1 billion, further strengthening the Group’s financial stability. In view of this, the rating agency S&P recently raised its outlook for the Lufthansa Group’s investment grade rating to ‘positive’. The equity ratio decreased by four percentage points to 22.5 per cent, mainly due to the impact of the first time implementation of the new reporting standards and to the increase in pension provisions following the discount rate reduction.

Outlook for 2018 unchanged

Compared to its guidance of 15 March, the Lufthansa Group now expects an organic capacity growth of some 6 per cent for 2018. Due to this one-percentage-point reduction in capacity growth and a weakening of the US dollar, the guidance for fuel costs has been lowered by EUR 100 million. Annual fuel costs are now expected to increase by EUR 600 million in 2018 to EUR 5.8 billion. This cost increase can be largely offset by an improved operating performance. The guidance for 2018 thus remains unchanged for an Adjusted EBIT slightly below previous year’s record level. Also unchanged is the guidance for a reduction in unit costs excluding fuel and currency factors by 1 to 2 per cent and a stable development of unit revenues excluding currency factors.

IFRS 15

The IFRS 15 ‘Revenue from Contracts with Customers’ reporting standard was implemented for the first time in the 2018 first-quarter accounts and financial statements. Its implementation leads to changes in revenue and cost positions, especially at the Network Airlines and the Eurowings Group. To take one example, passenger-based fees and charges which were formerly accounted on both the income and the expenses side are now netted in the profit and loss account. This reduces both income and expenses. But since EBIT is not affected, EBIT margin increases mathematically. Prior-year figures have not been restated.

Lufthansa Group		January to March		Change	Change
Lufthansa Group		2018	2017	reported	excl. IFRS 15
Total revenues	EUR m	7,640	7,691	-0.7%	+4.5%
of which traffic revenue	EUR m	5,785	5,808	-0.4%	+7.9%
EBIT	EUR m	27	16	+68.8%
Adjusted EBIT	EUR m	26	25	+4.0%
Adjusted EBIT margin	in %	0.3%	0.3%	0 pts.
Net result	EUR m	-57	-68	+16.2%
Gross investments¹⁾	EUR m	714	755	-5.4%
Operating cash flow	EUR m	1,625	1,648	-1.4%
Employees as of 31 March		132,620	128,541	+4,079
Earnings per share	EUR	-0.12	-0.15	+20.0%

1) excluding cash-out from equity investments

Only the 2018 figures are stated in accordance with the new IFRS 15. Prior-year figures have not been restated.

Copyright Photo: Eurowings grew at 28.8 percent in the first quarter. Eurowings Airbus A320-214 WL D-AEWG (msn 7121) (Visit Sweden – Goteborg) ZRH (Andi Hiltl). Image: 941518.

Eurowings aircraft slide show:

In March Lufthansa Group airlines increased capacity utilization to a new record level despite significantly increased services

Occupancy rate rises by 3.9 percentage points to 81.2 percent in March
Number of flights increases by 8.1% at the same time
Around 11.1 million passengers fly with Lufthansa Group Airlines , 15.7 percent more than a year earlier
Currency adjusted yield indication stable
Lufthansa grows especially in Munich
Point-to-point airlines carry around a third more passengers

In March 2018, the airlines of the Lufthansa Group welcomed around 11.1 million passengers. This shows an increase of 15.7% compared to the previous year’s month. The available seat kilometers were up 9% over the previous year, at the same time, sales increased by 14.5%. The seat load factor increased by 3.9 percentage points compared to March 2017 to 81.2%. This is a new record which is partly also connected with the postponement of the Easter holidays from April to March. Capacity utilization also reached an all-time high of 77.8 percent in the first quarter of 2018. Around 28.6 million passengers flew with the airlines of the Lufthansa Group in the first three months of this year.

The currency adjusted yield indication remained stable in March compared to previous year.

Cargo capacity increased four percent year-on-year, while cargo sales were up 0.4% in revenue tonne-kilometer terms. As a result, the Cargo load factor showed a corresponding reduction, decreasing 2.6 percentage points in the month to 71.3%.

Network Airlines

The Network Airlines, Lufthansa German Airlines, Swiss and Austrian Airlines, carried 8.2 million passengers in March, ten percent more than in the prior-year period. Compared to the previous year, the available seat kilometers increased by 5.3% in March. The sales volume was up 10.4% over the same period, increasing seat load factor by 3.7 percentage points to 81.1%.
Lufthansa German Airlines transported 5.7 million passengers in March, a 10.2% increase compared to the same month last year. A 4.8% increase in seat kilometers in March corresponds to a 9.2% increase in sales. Furthermore, the seat load factor was 81.5%, therefore 3.3 percentage points above the prior-year’s level. Lufthansa is growing above all at its Munich location. In March, 12.6% more passengers took off from the Bavarian 5-star hub than a year earlier. This means that growth in Munich was a third higher than in Frankfurt, where 9.2% more passengers flew than in the same month last year.

Point-to-Point Airlines

The Lufthansa Group’s Point-to-Point Airlines – Eurowings (including Germanwings) and Brussels Airlines – carried around 2.9 million passengers in March. Among this total, 2.7 million passengers were on short-haul flights and 260,000 flew long-haul. This amounts to an increase of 35.4% in comparison to the previous year. March capacity was 30.6% above its prior-year level, while its sales volume was up 39.1%, resulting in an increased seat load factor by five percentage points of 81.3%.

On short-haul services the Point-to-Point Airlines raised capacity 34.8% and increased sales volume by 48.4%, resulting in a 7.3 percentage points increase in seat load factor of 79.3%, compared to March 2017. The seat load factor for the long-haul services increased by 1.6 percentage points to 85% during the same period, following a 23.5% increase in capacity and a 25.8% rise in sales volume, compared to the previous year.

Eurowings aircraft slide show:

Lufthansa Group achieves its best financial result in its history

Results for 2017

Adjusted EBIT increased around 70 percent to some EUR 3 billion
Adjusted EBIT margin raised 2.9 percentage points to 8.4 percent
Earnings growth primarily driven by the Group’s airlines (including cargo)
Revenues up 12.4 percent to EUR 35.6 billion
Unit costs further reduced
60 percent higher dividend proposed at EUR 0.80 per share

Outlook for 2018

Stable unit revenue development expected
Unit costs to be further reduced by 1 to 2 percent
Higher fuel costs of some EUR 700 million expected to be largely compensated by improved operating performance
Adjusted EBIT for the year expected to be only slightly below its record in 2017

The Group continues;

“Our endeavors of the past few years are paying off. Our modernization has a sustainable impact. We have achieved the best result in the history of our company. 2017 was a very good year for our customers, our employees and our shareholders,” says Carsten Spohr, Chairman of the Executive Board & CEO of Deutsche Lufthansa AG. “Last year we were able to reduce costs again, while at the same time becoming the first – and the only – airline in Europe to be awarded a five-star rating. We are lowering our costs where this does not affect the customer, and are simultaneously further investing in our product and service quality.”

Total revenues for the Lufthansa Group in 2017 amounted to EUR 35.6 billion, a 12.4 percent increase on the previous year. The Adjusted EBIT of EUR 2.97 billion was a significant 69.7 percent year-on-year improvement. And the 8.4 percent Adjusted EBIT margin was up 2.9 percentage points compared to previous year. EBIT for the year increased more than EUR 1 billion to EUR 3.3 billion. The strong increase of EBIT includes the positive EUR 582 million one-off effect from agreeing on the collective labor agreement with the Vereinigung Cockpit union for the pilots of Lufthansa, Lufthansa Cargo and Germanwings, which was recognized in the income statement in December.

“We are particularly pleased that we were again able to lower our passenger airlines’ unit costs excluding fuel and currency factors last year. This is in particular as passenger related costs were actually up due to higher load factors, the variable remuneration was higher in light of strong result development, and additional costs because of compensation paid for the flight cancellations at Air Berlin burdened our cost as well,” adds Ulrik Svensson, Chief Financial Officer of Deutsche Lufthansa AG. “Excluding these one-off effects, we reduced our unit costs by 1.8 percent.”

The Lufthansa Group invested some EUR 3 billion in 2017, around a third more than in the previous year. This is partly due to investments of some EUR 900 million into aircraft from the Air Berlin flight operations. “These higher investments also reflect the increased size of our Group. But investments relative to revenue remain on one level with the world’s most successful airlines’,” comments Ulrik Svensson. “Important is that the return on capital continues to increase. In 2017, our Adjusted ROCE (after tax) improved by 4.6 percentage points to 11.6 percent.”

Despite the higher capital expenditure, free cash flow almost doubled in 2017 to EUR 2.3 billion. Net financial debt rose 6.8 percent to EUR 2.9 billion. This figure includes an initial EUR 1.7 billion funding for the new defined contributions model of the flight attendants’ pension fund. Total pension provisions decreased by EUR 3.2 billion in 2017. The year-end equity ratio stood at 26.5 percent, an increase of 5.9 percentage points.

“On the basis of these very good results, we propose a dividend of EUR 0.80 per share to the Annual General Meeting,” says Ulrik Svensson. “This is a 60 percent increase of the pay-out compared to last year. This is the minimum level of dividend payment that we aim to maintain in the coming years.”

Network Airlines

The Group’s Network Airlines – Lufthansa, SWISS and Austrian Airlines – increased their Adjusted EBIT by nearly 50 percent to some EUR 2.3 billion. With strong demand and a positive pricing environment, the Network Airlines raised their EBIT margin 2.6 percentage points to almost ten percent.

Point-to-Point Airlines

Despite the significant expenses in the context of acquiring capacities from Air Berlin, Eurowings reduced its unit costs excluding fuel and currency factors by 6.5 percent. On the back of this and strong market demand, Adjusted EBIT increased by some EUR 200 million. Despite adverse one-off factors related to market consolidation, the Group’s Point-to-Point Airlines improved their Adjusted EBIT margin by 7.3 percentage points and achieved a positive Adjusted EBIT of around EUR 100 million. The inorganic growth after the insolvency of Air Berlin will make a positive contribution to the Point-to-Point Airlines’ from 2019 onwards.

Aviation Services

The Group’s Aviation Services in total achieved a very good result, though the development among the business segments was quite different. A combination of cost reductions and strong demand helped Lufthansa Cargo to improve its Adjusted EBIT by almost EUR 300 million to EUR 242 million. The EUR 415 million earnings of Lufthansa Technik were broadly in line with prior-year levels. Against the background of the continuing transformation of its European operations, the LSG Group sustained a EUR 38 million decline in its earnings for the year to EUR 66 million.

Outlook

EUR 700 million higher fuel costs can be largely offset by an improved operating performance, so that for 2018 in total an Adjusted EBIT only slightly below previous year is expected. Organic capacity is expected to increase by some seven percent, as unit revenues excluding currency factors should remain broadly stable. Unit costs excluding fuel and currency factors should be further reduced by 1 to 2 percent.

“We will continue to consistently pursue our modernization,” concludes Carsten Spohr. “And in doing so, we will retain our clear focus on reducing our costs and at the same time raising our quality. This is the only way to sustainably increase our profitability. From a position of strength, we will continue to drive consolidation in Europe.”

Lufthansa aircraft slide show:

Video: Building a Lufthansa Boeing 777-9X model:

Lufthansa Group female pilots take off

On March 8, 2018, six all-female crews from Lufthansa, Swiss, Austrian Airlines, Eurowings and Brussels Airlines will start their morning rounds to Berlin on time for the International Women’s Day. The jets are flown from Frankfurt, Munich, Düsseldorf, Vienna, Zurich and Brussels by two female pilots each.

In order to send out another signal on this day, the FlyingLab on flight LH440 from Frankfurt to Houston is under the command of a purely female crew – in the cabin, in the cockpit and also in front of the camera. The Airbus A380’s in-flight conference will not only focus on the various aspects of digital transformation, but will also highlight the achievements of women in a technology-dominated environment. A total of six speakers will talk about artificial intelligence, virtual reality and the future of work and mobility. The FlyingLab is the world’s only open innovation platform in the air. It consists of an on-board conference, which every passenger can follow on his or her own personal device and the opportunity to test the latest innovative products and services. The aim of this FlyingLab will be the South by Southwest (SXSW) – the world’s largest festival for interactive marketing, music and film that takes place annually in Austin, Texas.

“We have already been able to increase the number of female applicants at our pilot flying school by addressing applicants in a more targeted manner and by making it easier to combine family and work,”says Dr. Bettina Volkens, Member of the Executive Board for Human Resources and Legal Affairs of Deutsche Lufthansa AG. “15 percent of our junior pilots are currently female.”

As early as 1988, the first two women began their scheduled service at Lufthansa. In 2010, there was a premiere for the global airfreight industry: A freighter from Lufthansa Cargo took off with a purely female crew. Women in the cockpit are no longer rare. Approximately six percent of the Lufthansa Group’s pilots are female and their share has risen steadily over the past few years. Approximately 80 percent of the cabin crew are female. For the growing number of female pilots, Lufthansa has had the word “Kapitänin” (“Captain”) specially approved by the Gesellschaft für deutsche Sprache.

In addition to the cockpit, the Lufthansa Group also aims to increase the proportion of women in management positions. This is currently 15 percent. By 2021, the proportion of female executives at first management level is to be increased to 18 percent and at second management level to as much as 24 percent. „In order to meet these goals, we are preparing our best female junior executives for their future management responsibilities with our own one-year program,” says Volkens. At the same time, it is important to me to reduce unconscious bias when filling vacancies. A specially programmed video supports our hiring managers in selecting the right personnel for the right job.

Photo: Lufthansa Group.

Lufthansa Group is standardizing its Airbus A320 fleet

The Lufthansa Group is driving forward the standardization of its Airbus A320 fleet: Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Eurowings, Lufthansa and Swiss International are developing a standard specification for the Airbus A320 fleet. At the same time, the airline brands will be preserved by a different brand look.

The standardization process applies to aircraft that will be delivered to Lufthansa Group Airlines as of 2019 onward.

When it comes to standardization, the airlines are focusing on the large, cost-intensive components such as cabin design and the galley. However, even components such as emergency equipment or electronic flight bag systems should comply with a uniform and group-wide standard in future. Further standardization, for example with regard to freight loading, is being developed in cooperation with the manufacturer.

In the future, the Airbus A320 is to be configured and standardized from the outset in such a way that aircraft can be converted within a short time and with little effort when they are transferred between Lufthansa Group airlines. This will allow the Lufthansa Group to react more quickly and flexibly to current developments and to move aircraft and capacities more easily and efficiently between the airlines and the Group’s hubs.

Costs for conversion and layover time can be significantly reduced. Moreover, standardization will result in further synergies when purchasing aircraft.

All in all, Lufthansa Group airlines are expecting to receive around 100 brand-new aircraft from the Airbus A320neo family by 2025.

Copyright Photo: The pictured Austrian OE-LBY was ex-Lufthansa D-AIZK. Austrian Airlines Airbus A320-214 OE-LBY (msn 5122) ZRH (Andi Hiltl). Image: 938291.

Austrian Airlines aircraft slide show:

Lufthansa Group to hire more than 8,000 new employees in 2018

Lufthansa Group has made this announcement:

In 2018, Deutsche Lufthansa AG will hire more than 8,000 new employees. The majority of them will be flight attendants who will work for various Lufthansa Group airlines in 2018. Lufthansa, Germany’s largest airline, will be hiring around 2,500 flight attendants alone at its hubs in Frankfurt and Munich; overall, the Lufthansa Group airlines will employ more than 4,000 new recruits.

Last year, besides its conventional application processes, Lufthansa carried out 11 “flight attendant castings”, which aroused great interest among the target group. Over 4,500 candidates have so far attended the various auditions and nearly 6,000 the regular applicants’ days in Frankfurt. Almost every third applicant received a job offer.

Just like Adriana Werner. “I’ve always wanted to work for Lufthansa,” says the mid-50-year-old new recruit, who was successful at the Lufthansa “flight attendant casting” in Offenburg last winter. “Being a flight attendant was and is a very big dream of mine. I couldn’t believe my luck at first,” she says happily. The dream of flying is now a reality for Adriana Werner.

However, employees are also being hired in other areas of the Group. Around 500 new hires are, for example, being planned for Lufthansa Technik at various locations. Austrian Airlines is also hiring a total of more than 500 new recruits, including flight attendants for the check-in and the cockpit, among others, and is also looking for employees in other business areas. With 38,000 employees, Lufthansa is the largest employer in Frankfurt and the federal state of Hesse.

The training of young people has special significance for the aviation group. In the 2017/18 training year, 250 new recruits will begin training or studying in the Lufthansa Group across Germany. And the choice is huge: A total of ten study programs and 30 apprenticeships – such as tool mechanic, systems catering, forwarding agent and logistics services – are available.

“Lufthansa is still one of the most attractive companies in Germany and is the ideal employer for many applicants. Last year, over 100,000 applications were submitted to the career portal http://www.Be-Lufthansa.com. We’re very proud of that. We are very pleased that we are able to hire more than 8,000 employees again this year,” says Dr. Bettina Volkens, member of the Executive Board and Head of HR & Legal Affairs at Deutsche Lufthansa AG.

Detailed information on entry opportunities in the Lufthansa Group and requirements can be found at http://www.Be-Lufthansa.com. Besides the “flight attendant castings”, applications can only be submitted via the career portal. A visit to the career fan page “Be-Lufthansa” on Facebook is also worthwhile. At http://www.facebook.de/BeLufthansa, HR experts give valuable tips and answer questions about the world of work in the Lufthansa Group. Or just click blog.be-lufthansa.com to get useful tips on possible training opportunities at Lufthansa.

In other news, Lufthansa also made this announcement:

The future of flying starts now: over a period of several months, the finalists of the “Telekom Fashion Fusion & Lufthansa FlyingLab” fashion and technology competition worked at Fab Lab Berlin on intelligent solutions for the flight experience of tomorrow. Three prototypes will be presented and tested on board a Lufthansa Airbus A380 today on its flight from Frankfurt to Houston. The young developer teams are presenting their ideas for new airline seats, on-board entertainment, and methods of communication between cabin crew and passengers. The platform of the event on flight LH440 is the Lufthansa FlyingLab, which gives Lufthansa passengers the opportunity to try out innovative products and services and find out more about smart fashion in a series of presentations – all at 33,000 feet.

Kai Duve, Head of Frankfurt Cabin Crews at Deutsche Lufthansa AG and member of the judging panel, is pleased with the innovative developments in the competition: “Technology and fashion are part of Lufthansa’s DNA. We’ve been working on functional clothing for 60 years. The challenge helps us expand our pool of ideas and gain valuable outside impetus: we can find out what our passengers really want on board. It brings us even closer to the flight experience of tomorrow.”

Overview of the teams:

Team feel.flight: Increased well-being on long-haul flights
The feel.flight team is presenting a full product system for improved individual communication and well-being on future long-haul flights. The center of communications between passengers and flight attendants is a chatbot, which can be addressed through most of the widespread messenger apps such as WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger. The chatbot is capable of classifying passenger needs, arranging them by priority, and coordinating the appropriate service activities. For other matters, such as requests for food and drinks or tips against fear of flying, a flight attendant becomes involved. Their uniform cuffs contain small displays that are linked with microcontrollers. For increased travel comfort, a blanket with integrated neck pillow can be worn like a cape and adjusted to the passenger’s individual need for warmth. Vibrations in the blanket’s neck pillow can wake the passenger gently, without a flight attendant having to intervene.

Team Smart Chair: The airline seat of tomorrow
The Smart Chair project – which is more of a visionary concept study than a functional prototype – focuses on flight passengers’ personal space. Every passenger will enjoy a fully customized flight experience in their Smart Chairs – from entertainment program to travel comfort. The Smart Chair team also worked on a new outfit for cabin personnel. The fabrics used to make the prototype uniforms are thermoregulated, breathable, antibacterial, and antiallergic. As such, they stand up to the high demands of flight attendant workwear.

Team Lyra: Better focus on passengers with smart glasses
The Lyra team, with its “LYRA Connect” web application, wants to improve future communication between passengers and cabin crew, and thus personal service on board. For the flight attendants, LYRA Connect minimizes routing and optimizes service activities. Passengers can use their own mobile devices to send requests easily to the flight crew. Passengers can use it to order drinks, for example, or ask whether they will make their connecting flights. The next available flight attendant sees the request directly in their field of vision, thanks to smart glasses, and knows immediately who has asked the question or placed the order. The flight attendants can also call up additional information about passengers. To do so, they have to stand on a signal field, which is installed in the floor in front of each seat. LYRA then displays the corresponding information discretely on the flight attendant’s smart glasses. As a result, the flight attendant can find out in advance which language a passenger speaks, for example, or which meal preferences they specified.

The teams used modern information and manufacturing technologies to develop their prototypes, including 3D printing, laser cutting, digitally supported Jacquard weaves, and even the integration of artificial intelligence. The teams were supported by digitization and aviation experts, as well as by partner companies, over the entire project phase. Zeiss Smart Optics provided its slim data goggles for testing, for example.

The industry focus of the competition was a complete success
Deutsche Telekom, the initiator of Fashion Fusion, is also convinced that the industry focus they defined in this year’s challenge, on the future of flying, together with partner Lufthansa, was successful.

“The Fashion Fusion Challenge shows how digitization can positively change our travel experience on board aircraft and increase our personal well-being. We see ourselves as enablers here, because smart gadgets, smart fashion, and wearables require connectivity. With our gigabit network of the future and the best network technologies, we offer smart future experiences,” says Antje Hundhausen, Vice President for 3D Brand Experience at Deutsche Telekom.

Collaboration with the finalists extended
Following the Lufthansa FlyingLab, the prototypes will be presented to an international audience in Las Vegas, at an accompanying event to the CES (Consumer Electronics Show). The initiators of this exclusive challenge are pursuing further ventures with the teams: Lufthansa plans to pilot a larger number of the feel.flight blankets during the next FlyingLab, for example. Deutsche Telekom has also invited several teams to attend brand presentations at the Mobile World Congress and #FASHIONTECH in Berlin. Deutsche Telekom is also in talks with the Lyra team about the further development of the web application.

In-flight conference with renowned digital experts
The conference portion is the heart of each Lufthansa FlyingLabs flight. On board flight LH440, five renowned digital experts are providing insights into the topic “Fashion & Technology“: Prof. Dr. Paul Lukowicz (German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence), Christian Stammel (CEO of Wearable Technologies AG), Dr. Sabine Seymour (CEO of SUPA), Camille Bénech (Global Brand Lead for Luxury & Beauty at Google), and Paul Dillinger (VP and Head of Global Product Innovation and Premium Collection Design for Levi Strauss & Co). The speakers will be on camera on the Lufthansa flagship. All passengers will see the live video stream and presentations via WiFi, over a network installed specifically for the FlyingLab. The system also permits passengers to use their own devices to send questions to the speakers. The result is not only a one-of-a-kind conference atmosphere at cruising altitude, but also a dialog between passengers and experts.

Photos: Lufthansa Group.

European Commission approves the Lufthansa Group’s acquisition of LGW – Luftfahrtgesellschaft Walter

Lufthansa Group made this announcement:

The European Commission gave its formal approval on December 21, 2017 to the acquisition of Luftfahrtgesellschaft Walter mbH (LGW) by the Lufthansa Group. The approval follows an extensive assessment of the planned transaction by the European Union’s competition authorities in their merger control capacity, after the Lufthansa Group concluded an agreement on October 13, 2017 to take over parts of the insolvent Air Berlin Group. The Lufthansa Group had made extensive concessions in advance of this approval.

All LGW personnel to be taken over

The acquisition of LGW will see 33 aircraft firmly added to the Eurowings Group fleet: 20 Bombardier DHC-8-400s (Q400s) (above) and 13 aircraft of the Airbus A320 family. All the employees of LGW will transfer to Eurowings with their current contracts of employment. With additional recruitments, the number of personnel in LGW’s flight operations should rise to up to 870 in 2018.

The formal transaction for the acquisition of LGW has been scheduled for January 2018.

Over the past few weeks, Eurowings has already hired over 500 employees, including a large number of pilots and flight attendants. By now, we have collective expansion agreements with all the unions ensuring that all flight operations of Eurowings, without exception, will be able to grow in the near term.

Copyright Photo: All LGW aircraft with now operate in the Eurowings livery, shedding the Airberlin color scheme. Airberlin (airberlin.com) (LGW) Bombardier DHC-8-402 (Q400) D-ABQB (msn 4226) ZRH (Rolf Wallner). Image: 928479.

Lufthansa Group submits a concept for establishing a re-structured Alitalia

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The Lufthansa Group submitted an offer letter on October 17, 2017, expressing its interest in establishing a “NewAlitalia”. Lufthansa has opted not to make an offer for the complete Airline but has stated interest in only parts of the Global network traffic and European and domestic point-to-point business.

The offer includes a concept for a newly structured Alitalia with a focused business model (“NewAlitalia”), which could develop long-term economic prospects.

The responsible commissioners have agreed to maintain confidentiality regarding the details of the offer.

Copyright Photo: Alitalia (3rd) (Societa Aerea Italiana) Boeing 777-3Q8 ER EI-WLA (msn 35783) ZRH (Andi Hiltl). Image: 939460.

Lufthansa Group airlines to fly to 308 destinations in 103 countries this summer

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The airlines in the Lufthansa Group – Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Eurowings, Lufthansa and Swiss International Air Lines – will be an even more attractive option for holidaymakers this summer. As always, passengers can rely on the high standard of service, quality and reliability of the Lufthansa Group.

The Group continued;

In the forthcoming 2017 summer flight timetable, the airlines will offer their customers precisely 23,476 flights each week around the world. This summer, the Lufthansa Group airlines will link 308 destinations in 103 countries via their hubs in Frankfurt, Munich, Zurich, Vienna and Brussels, but also via many point-to-point routes. These services will be supplemented by more than 18,000 code-sharing flights with some 30 partner airlines, offering passengers a network which almost spans the globe. The summer flight timetables for the individual Group airlines apply from Sunday, March 26, 2017 until Saturday, October 28, 2017.

The main news from the Lufthansa Group airlines:

Lufthansa

Lufthansa is adding new attractive tourist destinations to its European flight timetable for the forthcoming summer season 2017. Lufthansa flies its holiday passengers to the “best weeks of the year” with the service of a scheduled airline – whether it’s for a beach holiday, an expedition or a city break.

From the end of March 2017 for the first time, there will be three flights a week from Frankfurt to Santiago de Compostela (Spain). Bordeaux (France) is on Lufthansa’s flight plan from Frankfurt twice a week for wine fans and sun-seekers. Flights leave on Thursdays and Sundays for the metropolis on the Gironde, the economic, political and cultural capital of south-west France.

Lufthansa is offering flights to Shannon (Ireland) once a week from Frankfurt. Shannon is in County Clare, one of Ireland’s most popular holiday regions.

The program of summer destinations from Frankfurt is completed by Pula in Croatia and the Baltic resort of Heringsdorf.

Last but not least, fans of the flower island of Madeira will be happy, because Lufthansa is now offering flights to Funchal (Portugal) from Frankfurt all year round, not just in winter. And Frankfurt–Paderborn is now back in the Lufthansa flight plan, too.

Starting this summer, Lufthansa will be extending its route network from Munich to include two great new flight destinations. Beginning March 28, 2017, there will be flights six times a week from Munich to Nantes, located in the Pays de la Loire region of France. Additionally, at the beginning of the Easter holidays, on April 9, 2017, Lufthansa will, for the first time, offer flights from Bavaria‘s capital to Santiago de Compostela in northern Spain. From March 27, 2017 onwards, there will also be flights departing from Frankfurt every Monday, Thursday and Friday to the pilgrimage destination in Spain. This summer travelers will also have the chance to fly non-stop to Marrakech for the first time. There will be flights twice a week to the Moroccan royal city – popular with lovers of culture – departing every Friday and Sunday.

Aside from these new destinations, the summer flight schedule is also being expanded to include more flights to some already popular destinations. There will be more weekly flights to Malta, Cologne, Dublin, the Romanian city of Sibiu, Geneva, Graz and St. Petersburg.

North America fans starting from Munich will be happy too – both the Canadian city of Montreal and Denver in the USA will be featured daily in the future flight program. There is also something special coming for Lufthansa passengers traveling to Boston – from March 14, 2017 onwards, the new Lufthansa A350-900 will be flying to this city in Massachusetts. A third A350-900 service will start to Mumbai in the second half of April. This aircraft is currently the most advanced and most environmentally-friendly long haul aircraft in the world. If you don’t want to wait until then for this amazing new flight experience, starting February 10, 2017, you can fly with the Airbus A350-900 to New Delhi. Lufthansa will be operating daily flights to the Indian capital throughout the summer.

Austrian Airlines

Austrian Airlines is adding another long-haul destination in North America to its 2017 summer flight timetable. From April 10, 2017, there will be up to six flights a week with a Boeing 777-200 to the biggest city in California, Los Angeles (USA). Austrian Airlines will offer a total of up to 44 weekly non-stop flights to North America in the 2017 summer flight plan. They include up to five flights a week to Miami, up to six a week to Los Angeles and Toronto, and up to seven connections a week to Washington and Chicago. Austrian will continue to offer a total of 13 flights a week to Newark and JFK in New York. The airline will be adding a second long-haul destination to its portfolio in 2017. From October 25, 2017, there will be a nonstop flight every Wednesday from Vienna to the Seychelles in the Indian Ocean. Austrian Airlines will offer its passengers a wide range of up to 130 destinations in total in its 2017 summer flight timetable.

Brussels Airlines

Brussels Airlines is welcoming five new destinations this summer. From March 30, the Belgian airline in the Lufthansa Group will connect Brussels Airport five times a week with Mumbai (India). Several tourist destinations will be added to the short- and medium-haul route network at Brussels Airlines. Funchal (Portugal), Comiso (Italy), Rhodes (Greece) and Palma de Mallorca (Spain) will feature in the Brussels Airlines flight plan for the first time. As well as introducing new destinations, the Belgian airline is also increasing the number of flights on existing routes. Abidjan (Ivory Coast), Accra (Ghana), Lisbon, Porto (both Portugal), Alicante (Spain), Bordeaux (France), Billund (Denmark), Warsaw (Poland) and Athens (Greece) will have more frequent connections to Brussels Airport, the Brussels Airlines hub.

Eurowings

Eurowings will continue to expand its long-haul program from Cologne/Bonn in the forthcoming 2017 summer flight timetable. From June, passengers can fly twice a week to Las Vegas (USA). Windhoek (Namibia) is the first route to Africa to feature in the flight timetable. Another new destination from Cologne is the iconic German island of Sylt. It will be served with three flights a week, with one flight a week to the Greek island of Karpathos. Then there are the eastern European cities of Pula (Croatia) and Cracow (Poland), with two and six flights a week respectively from Düsseldorf.

For passengers who don’t want to fly far for their sun and sand, Eurowings is flying three times a week to Ibiza (Spain) and once a week to Cagliari (Sardinia) from Hanover this summer. Our passengers also have the opportunity to fly to Faro, on the Portuguese Algarve, twice a week.

Passengers can also fly from Berlin Tegel to Faro (Portugal) every Sunday and to the Greek island of Mykonos once a week.

There are also two new connections for Eurowings passengers from Stuttgart. They can fly three times a week to Pisa (Italy) and once a week to Cyprus.

Eurowings is also adding four new routes from Vienna to its summer flight timetable. There are two flights a week to Kavala in the Macedonia region of Greece and one to Lamezia Terme in Calabria. Zadar in northern Dalmatia will be served with three flights a week, with two flights a week to Santorini (Greece).

Two Airbus A320s are initially to be stationed at the new Eurowings base in Palma de Mallorca from the end of May 2017. In the summer, they will fly from Mallorca to Paderborn/Lippstadt, Münster/Osnabrück and Saarbrücken, as well as to Basel in Switzerland.

Eurowings is offering a total of 32 new routes from Munich for the first time, starting in the summer. They include six connections a week from Munich to Paris, London and Amsterdam, along with three to Naples and two to Mykonos.

Swiss International Air Lines

Swiss International Air Lines will expand its capacity from Zurich and Geneva in the forthcoming summer flight timetable. From April 22, 2017, Swiss will operate new daily services from Zurich to San Francisco (USA) with the Boeing 777-300ER. Between June and October 2017, the Boeing 777-300ER will also be in service on six of the 12 weekly connections to Chicago. Swiss will add five new seasonal destinations to its summer flight plan: Bergen, Cork, Figari, Niš and Sylt. Introducing additional Bombardier CSeries aircraft in Zurich and Geneva will enable Swiss to offer its passengers even greater comfort on European routes.

Edelweiss

Edelweiss, the sister airline of Swiss, will begin services to the Greek island of Zakynthos in the summer season.

Top Image: Lufthansa Group.