Tag Archives: 747-830

Lufthansa to take legal action against Vereinigung Cockpit’s Group Collective Labor Agreement Committee

Lufthansa (Frankfurt) has issued this statement concerning the on-going strikes by the VC pilots union:

The response from the Vereinigung Cockpit pilots’ union to the numerous proposals and offers of talks submitted by Lufthansa has been further strike action, which today is affecting long-haul services and tomorrow will affect all the company’s short- and medium-haul routes, and thereby again subject its customers to unacceptable inconvenience.

For the past two years, right up until yesterday, Lufthansa has been approaching the Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) Group Collective Labor Agreement Committee with constructive proposals, offers and concessions. In doing so, the company has made concrete proposals on every open collective labor agreement issue, with a view to working together with the VC to jointly ensure the future viability and competitiveness of the company as a whole and of Lufthansa German Airlines in particular. In addition, Lufthansa has also demonstrated a willingness to discuss issues with the VC Group Collective Labor Agreement Committee that extend far beyond the latter’s responsibility and authority.

Since it is evidently impossible at present to engage in constructive negotiations, Lufthansa has now resolved that:

The existing rights and benefits held by the cockpit personnel already at the company under their present Group Collective Labor Agreements (CLAs) will be frozen at their current levels until such time as any new Group CLA is concluded. In view of the company’s current inability to compete, however, no more new pilots will be employed under these Group CLA conditions at Lufthansa German Airlines, Lufthansa Cargo or Germanwings. As a result, the natural employee turnover within the present cockpit corps will lead to gradual reductions in these companies’ aircraft fleets. At the same time, every present cockpit crew member at these companies will retain their position.
Any future discussions with the VC Group Collective Labor Agreement Committee will be limited to those issues within its responsibility and authority. These are in particular the Compensation CLA, the Umbrella CLA, the CLA on Transfers and Promotions, the CLA on Old Age Provisions, the CLA on Employee Representation and the CLA on Transitional Retirement Provisions.
Lufthansa will carefully consider whether all the agreements between the company and the VC Group Collective Labor Agreement Committee on which notice has not yet been served can be meaningfully maintained.
Lufthansa will submit a claim for compensatory damages against the Vereinigung Cockpit to the Frankfurt Labor Court. This claim will be based on the unlawfulness of the pilots’ strike of April 2014, when the Vereinigung Cockpit ordered strike action against Lufthansa Cargo even though the corresponding CLA was still in force. The damage caused to the Lufthansa Group as a result of the April 2014 strike totaled around EUR 60 million.
Lufthansa is considering what possibilities (if any) the German Collective Bargaining Act (“Tarifeinheitsgesetz”) offers to prevent further harm to the company and its customers. In taking these actions Lufthansa is assuming responsibility for the future competitiveness and viability of the entire company, for its customers (who are currently being subjected to unacceptable inconvenience) and for its 120,000 employees from all personnel groups whose jobs are directly dependent on the company’s future.

“We would have liked to finally resume our CLA negotiations with the Vereinigung Cockpit instead of having to respond with this further escalation,” says Bettina Volkens, Chief Officer Corporate Human Resources & Legal Affairs at Deutsche Lufthansa AG. “I also appeal to our pilots to live up to their personal responsibilities. With the strike plans outlined by the VC for the time between now and the end of this year, the financial damage to our company would exceed 100,000 euros per pilot. It is high time we sat down and found a solution here.”

Deutsche Lufthansa AG

Lufthansa later issued this statement after the court declared the strikes as illegal:

Lufthansa welcomes the decision of the Hessen Labor Court in Frankfurt am Main to prohibit the strike action by the Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) pilots’ union with immediate effect.

The Court described the VC’s strike action as “evidently unlawful” in that, for the VC, the strike was clearly motivated not only by the official reason stated, i.e. pilots’ transitional retirement provisions, but also by the Wings Concept of the Lufthansa Group. This was not, the Court found, a valid strike objective. The Court further noted that the VC was not prepared to enter into overall mediation unless the Wings Concept was included therein.

The Court’s ruling does not permit recourse to any further legal channels. Lufthansa will offer its customers flight schedules that are virtually back to normal from tomorrow onwards, together with its usual reliable service. For planning certainty reasons, today’s special timetable will remain in effect.

Lufthansa remains willing to resume its negotiations on all open collective labor agreement items with the VC’s Group Collective Labor Agreement Committee at any time.

“Our goal is still to work with the VC to find a joint solution to all the open CLA issues through the negotiating process,” confirms Dr. Bettina Volkens, Chief Officer Corporate Human Resources of Deutsche Lufthansa AG. Deutsche Lufthansa AG

Copyright Photo: Brian McDonough/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 747-830 D-ABYT (msn 37844) in the 1968 retro livery approaches the runway at Dulles International Airport near Washington.

Lufthansa aircraft slide show:

Lufthansa Group’s 2014 net profit declines over 84% to only $58.1 million

Lufthansa Group (Frankfurt) reported a much lower 2014 net profit of €55 million ($58.1 million), down significantly from €313 million ($330.8 million) for 2013. The group blamed the decline “to a number of factors, particularly a reduction in the market value of the exchangeable notes for JetBlue shares and the adverse impact of the changes in the value of fuel price hedging options. The net result under IFRS was further burdened by the contractually-agreed sale of the infrastructure division of Lufthansa Systems AG.” The strikes by the LH pilots also hurt.

Revenue for the year remained flat at €30 billion ($31.7 billion).

Here is the full statement:

Deutsche Lufthansa AG achieved its operating-result objective for 2014. The EUR 954 million operating profit reported for the year was a EUR 255 million or 37% improvement on the prior-year result. Following a revision of its original projections owing to negative yield trends and the extraordinary impact of strike action, the company had projected an operating profit for the year of EUR 1 billion in June 2014, provided no additional costs were incurred through further industrial action.

Total Lufthansa Group revenue for the year remained broadly unchanged at around EUR 30 billion, despite the substantial yield declines in the passenger transport segment. Results were boosted by a EUR 364 million decline in fuel costs (deriving largely from fuel price reductions) and a EUR 351 million benefit from the changes that were made to the Lufthansa Group’s aircraft and spare powerplant depreciation policy in 2014.

Strike actions by pilots and security personnel reduced the 2014 operating result by a total of EUR 232 million (EUR 62 million thereof in December alone). The adjusted operating result, which excludes the non-recurring effects of SCORE-related restructuring costs and project costs, amounted to EUR 1.2 billion (compared to EUR 1.0 billion for 2013). The high investments of EUR 2.8 billion were largely concerned with fleet renewals and cabin interior enhancements.

“Our results for 2014 show us clearly where we currently stand,” says Carsten Spohr, Chairman of the Executive Board & CEO of Deutsche Lufthansa AG. “On the one hand, all the business segments of the Lufthansa Group are profitable and, with an operating profit of almost EUR 1 billion, we achieved our projection in a far-from-easy year. At the same time, though, with our high investments in modern aircraft and premium services, we simply have to further increase our operating profit. For this we need competitive structures; and that’s what we continue to consistently work on.”

Net profit for the year under IFRS amounted to EUR 55 million, substantially below the EUR 313 million of 2013. The decline is attributable to a number of factors, particularly a reduction in the market value of the exchangeable notes for JetBlue shares and the adverse impact of the changes in the value of fuel price hedging options. The net result under IFRS was further burdened by the contractually-agreed sale of the infrastructure division of Lufthansa Systems AG.

The 2014 net result under the German local GAAP HGB was even further depressed. In addition to the sale of the IT infrastructure division, the net result here was reduced in particular by an increase in pension liabilities following a further fall in average interest rates, and by the need to make provisions for contingent losses on fuel price hedges following the steep oil price declines. As a consequence, the net result under the local GAAP HGB amounted to EUR -732 million. The loss was offset by a corresponding transfer from capital reserves. In view of the HGB net loss, no dividend can be distributed for 2014.

“Given the results that we achieved in our core business, we can no longer regard sticking to inherited uneconomic structures as an option for the future of the Lufthansa Group,” Carsten Spohr concludes. “The competitive pressures on our airlines will only further increase. We have substantially improved our products and services, and we’ve further raised the quality of our group member carriers. We’re back among the world’s best airlines in the eyes of our customers. What we need to do now is lay the foundations on which we can regain a leading position in our industry in economic terms, too.”

Passenger airlines feel intensified market pressures

The Passenger Airline Group contributed EUR 553 million to the group operating result, a EUR 40 million increase on the EUR 513 million of the previous year. Despite substantial assistance in the form of lower fuel costs and the changed depreciation policy, Lufthansa German Airlines’ EUR 252 million operating profit fell short of the EUR 282 million of 2013. The results for Lufthansa German Airlines include those of Germanwings, which made further progress in 2014 on its path to profitability. SWISS met expectations with an operating profit of EUR 289 million.

Austrian Airlines posted an operating profit of EUR 10 million, substantially down from the EUR 25 million of 2013. The decline is in part the result of falling yields on numerous routes. Yield declines in the face of a further intensification of competitive pressures were tangibly felt in the results of all the Lufthansa Group’s member airlines. In addition, Austrian Airlines’ results for 2014 also include the one-off costs incurred in the conclusion of a new and more competitive collective labor agreement with its personnel. On the plus side, the new CLA marks a major step for the carrier towards establishing competitive structures, and thus lays a key foundation for its future success.

Positive trends at Lufthansa Cargo and the service companies

The service companies of the Lufthansa Group maintained their operating results at their previous high levels. Lufthansa Technik posted an operating profit of EUR 392 million, only slightly short of its record EUR 404 million of 2013. LSG Sky Chefs also continued its strong business performance of the past few years with an operating profit of EUR 100 million. IT Services, which was being reported as a single business entity for the last time in 2014, posted another favourable operating profit of EUR 37 million (compared to EUR 36 million for 2013). Lufthansa Cargo raised its operating profit from the EUR 79 million of 2013 to EUR 100 million. Despite tough competition within the airfreight sector and higher depreciation needs, the Lufthansa Group’s logistics business was able to maintain its success thanks to its efficient capacity management and its modernized freighter fleet.

“With their strong business results, our service companies have shown once again that they make an invaluable contribution to the broad-based positioning of the Lufthansa Group,” comments Simone Menne, Chief Officer Finance & Aviation Services of Deutsche Lufthansa AG. “They generate stable returns and they are active participants in the further global growth of the aviation sector. And with our goal of raising the proportion of Lufthansa Group revenues that we generate outside our classic airline hub business from 30% to 40%, we want to make even greater use in future of this stabilizing effect.”

Lufthansa aims to be first choice for customers, employees, shareholders and partners

The Lufthansa Group unveiled an ambitious work programme with seven fields of action last July. In addition to other objectives, the programme is intended to secure quality leadership in the Group’s business segments, enhance the efficiency of organizational structures and processes and strengthen the Group’s innovative credentials. This in turn should enable the Group to devise, develop and implement profitable new concepts for its further growth. The new Eurowings, which will offer attractive short- and long-haul services from the 2015/16 winter schedules onwards, is one example of the new growth opportunities that can arise from an efficient structural foundation.

Many further efficiency-enhancing projects and actions were developed under the groupwide SCORE programme last year. All in all, SCORE generated over 6,000 individual projects between 2012 and 2014 that contributed EUR 2.5 billion to the Group’s bottom line. At the same time, however, these results enhancements have been almost entirely nullified by adverse trends over the same period, such as cost inflation and yield declines. SCORE will now be incorporated into one of the fields of action within the work programme, and will thus become a permanent groupwide concern.

“After the safety of our flight operations, it’s ensuring our future viability that is our paramount priority,” said Carsten Spohr on the Lufthansa Group’s further development at the Annual Results Media Conference today. “And, having set our key courses in 2014, we’ll be placing the focus this year on putting into practice what we’ve resolved to do to achieve this objective.”

Clearer projection for 2015: adjusted EBIT of over EUR 1.5 billion

The Lufthansa Group expects business to improve in 2015, when the Group will adopt the new financial indicators of EBIT and adjusted EBIT for the first time. Adjusted EBIT is EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) net of book gains or losses on disposals, extraordinary appreciation or depreciation and non-recurring pension-fund transactions. The switch should enhance the transparency and the comparability of the Lufthansa Group’s results. For 2015 the Group expects to report an adjusted EBIT of over EUR 1.5 billion, a substantial improvement on the 2014 group operating result. Adjusted EBIT for 2014 amounted to EUR 1.2 billion.

Lufthansa German Airlines expects to post a tangible improvement in its operating result, though this will continue to be saddled by fleet re-equipment project costs. Groupwide investments are planned to total EUR 2.9 billion in 2015, but should then be limited to EUR 2.5 billion each in 2016 and 2017. For SWISS the Group expects an operating result that is broadly in line with 2014’s, despite the adversities caused by the strengthening of the Swiss franc.

Austrian Airlines should reap the benefits of its restructuring programme in the course of 2015 and achieve a substantial improvement in its operating result. Lufthansa Cargo is expected to effect a slight improvement in results, while the profits at Lufthansa Technik are likely to see a slight decline as the Group’s MRO business invests more substantially in growth projects. The Lufthansa Group also expects to report a tangible increase in operating profit at LSG Sky Chefs, the world’s leading airline catering group.

Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 747-830 D-ABYP (msn 37839) with the special “1500th Boeing 747” markings arrives at Los Angeles International Airport.

Lufthansa aircraft slide show:

Lufthansa to introduce the Boeing 747-800 on the Newark route tomorrow

Lufthansa (Frankfurt) is planning to introduce the larger Boeing 747-800 on the daily Frankfurt – Newark route tomorrow (February 23) instead of March 29 per Airline Route. The newer Boeing 747-800 will replace the older 747-400 on the route.

Lufthansa aircraft slide show:

Lufthansa’s new basic 1968 Boeing 747-830 retro jet

Lufthansa (Frankfurt) will soon take delivery of this brand new Boeing 747-830 D-ABYT (msn 37844) (above). The new Jumbo was rolled out of the paint shop on February 8 at Paine Field sporting a basic 1968 livery, albeit minus the traditional metal finish on the bottom of the fuselage for that period. The aircraft will soon be flying test flights and we will have more photos soon.

The retro color scheme is part of modern day Lufthansa’s 60th Anniversary celebrations. Post-war Lufthansa restarted operations on April 1, 1955.

Top Photo: Lufthansa. D-ABYT in the Boeing paint shop after the work was finished.

Bottom Copyright Photo: Bruce Drum/AirlinersGallery.com. The first LH 747, Boeing 747-130 D-ABYA (msn 19746), is pictured taxiing to the gate at New York (JFK) on April 8, 1971 in the original 1968 livery for the Boeing Jumbo. The first 747 was handed over to the airline on March 10, 1970.

Lufthansa aircraft slide show:

Lufthansa Group posts a nine-month operating profit of EUR 849 million ($1.07 billion)

Lufthansa Group (Frankfurt), despite the on-going pilot strikes at Lufthansa (Frankfurt), remains confident its can maintain its profitability of 1 billion euro for the year. The Group today issued this report:

The Lufthansa Group remains confident of achieving its profit targets for 2014 – despite experiencing a difficult third quarter, and despite strike action eroding EUR 170 million from its earnings results. The Group expects to post an operating profit of around EUR 1 billion for the year, excluding the impact of any further strike action between now and year-end. The projection has been strengthened by favorable results for the first nine months: the Lufthansa Group achieved an operating profit of around EUR 849 million for January-to-September 2014, a EUR 186 million improvement on the same period last year. Adjusted for non-recurring restructuring and project costs, this represents an operating profit of some EUR 1 billion for the first-nine-month period. Third-quarter operating profit amounted to EUR 735 million, up EUR 145 million on the prior-year period.

Read the full report: CLICK HERE

Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 747-830 D-ABYO (msn 37841) with Fanhansa titles departs from Los Angeles International Airport.

Lufthansa:

Lufthansa today unveils its new Premium Economy Class on D-ABYQ

Lufthansa (Frankfurt) has converted its first aircraft with the new Premium Economy Class. The company issued this statement:

At 11.00 a.m. today, LH 9880, a special flight took off from Frankfurt Airport. On board the Boeing 747-830 was the new Premium Economy Class. The aircraft, with the registration number D-ABYQ (msn 37839(, is the first in the Lufthansa fleet to offer the new class of travel on board. Experts from Lufthansa Technik have fitted the Boeing 747-8 with the 32 new Premium Economy Class seats and performed all the necessary quality checks.

The aircraft, which is called the “Schleswig-Holstein”, flew over the German region of the same name in a two-hour special flight.

“Today, we are seeing a genuine première”, said Karl Ulrich Garnadt, Member of the Executive Board of Lufthansa AG and CEO of Lufthansa German Airlines. “We are launching a new travel class for the first time in 35 years.” Garnadt stressed that Premium Economy was an important part of the “biggest product upgrade in Lufthansa’s history”. By late summer of next year, Lufthansa will have modified First, Business and Premium Economy Class on its entire long-haul fleet according to schedule and as part of its quality campaign. “With Premium Economy Class alone, we will be able to offer some 1.5 million passengers per year the opportunity to choose extra comfort and quality at affordable prices,” said the German Airlines CEO.

From as early as December 1 – nine days earlier than scheduled – Lufthansa customers will be able to enjoy Premium Economy Class on all flights on the Boeing 747-8 fleet. The “dash-8 fleet” will then offer by far the most cutting-edge and exclusive travelling experience available at Lufthansa.

Premium Economy Class seats will make up some ten percent of the entire seating capacity on each wide-bodied aircraft. Over the next few months, Lufthansa will thus fit between 21 (Airbus A330-300) and 52 (Airbus A380-800) new seats in each of its aircraft. On board the Boeing 747-8, 32 seats will be modified in line with Premium Economy Class specifications. The airline commissioned a total of 3,600 seats from the manufacturer ZIM.

“Booking levels to date have significantly exceeded our expectations”, Garnadt added. “This shows that we are striking a chord with customers with our new offering. As well as cost-conscious business travellers, we’re also attracting the rapidly growing target group of leisure travellers who don’t want to skimp on on-board comforts during their holidays.”

Alongside Premium Economy Class, Lufthansa is also working intently on upgrades to First and Business Class on board its long-haul aircraft. All these quality-related measures are set to be completed by late summer 2015. Lufthansa will then be in a position to offer its guests in all classes the exclusive travelling experience of a prizewinning five-star First Class as well as the new Business Class, where aircraft seats can be transformed at the touch of a button into a comfortable bed with a horizontal sleeping area of 1.98 metres long.

“I firmly believe that, with this package of products and measures, we will undoubtedly achieve our objective of becoming the first Western five-star airline”, said Garnadt.

Lufthansa is currently offering special introductory prices for Premium Economy Class flights. For instance, return flights to Washington D.C. are available from as little as EUR 1,199, while passengers to Beijing can enjoy the new travelling experience for a mere EUR 1,249.
In addition, no rebooking fees are being charged to passengers looking to rebook from Economy to Premium Economy Class. As soon as Lufthansa Premium Economy Class becomes available on a flight route, an existing Economy Class booking can be upgraded to Premium Economy Class. Passengers will only have to pay the difference between the fares of the two tickets, provided that no changes are made to the original flights that were booked. This applies even if the original ticket was booked for a price that did not permit rebooking.

To increase global awareness of the new Premium Economy Class on the market, Lufthansa launched a broad marketing campaign already in mid-September. At the heart of this campaign is its “Recorder” TV advertisement (below). This shows the British musician Duncan Townsend experiencing the extras available in Premium Economy Class for the first time. Brandishing a sound recorder, he combines many different snippets of sound that he hears on his journey into a rhythm, which ultimately evolves into a re-interpreted version of Billy Idol’s “Rebel Yell”: “More, more, more…”

Lufthansa will introduce its new Premium Economy Class on December 1 on the following routes from Frankfurt: Beijing, Buenos Aires, Chicago O’Hare, Hong Kong, Los Angles, Mexico City, Sao Paulo, Seoul and Washington Dulles.

For more information: CLICK HERE

All images above by Lufthansa.

Copyright Photo Below: Bjoern Schmitt/AirlinersGallery.com. A dramatic view of Lufthansa’s Boeing 747-830 D-ABYI (msn 37833) on final approach to the runway at Los Angeles International Airport over the parking lot.

Lufthansa:

Video:

Lufthansa is facing a strike by its pilots tomorrow

Lufthansa (Frankfurt) has issued this statement today:

Lufthansa regrets the announcement of strike action by the Vereinigung Cockpit pilots’ union (VC) for tomorrow (Friday). This morning – and therefore just a few hours before the start of talks that had been agreed for today – the union announced that there would be a strike at Germanwings if agreement wasn’t reached today (Thursday) on the issue of transitional benefits for pilots.

In a letter on Monday, Lufthansa had proposed today’s talks in order to resume negotiations and had prepared a suggestion on what form further negotiations should take. As per Lufthansa’s invitation, the aim of these talks would primarily have been to specify an orderly process and a timetable for further negotiations.

Dr Bettina Volkens, Chief Officer Human Resources and Legal at Deutsche Lufthansa AG, says: ‘We are very disappointed that we cannot avert strike action. The impression given is that the Vereinigung Cockpit pilots’ union had already decided to strike. It is unrealistic to expect to reach agreement on a new model for sustainable transitional benefits in the course of a single day. The fact that an ultimatum for concluding a wage agreement was issued on the morning of negotiations – even though we made it clear that the talks would initially have to be about what form the further negotiation process should take – is very unusual and incomprehensible.’

Lufthansa and Germanwings will now be primarily focusing on limiting the impact of the strike. The strike action announced for Friday will coincide with the end of school holidays in Thuringia and Saxony. Dr Bettina Volkens says: ‘We will do everything to provide the best-possible service to Germanwings passengers and, if possible, to get them to their destination in spite of the strike.’

Prior to the strike, Lufthansa had already made an offer to the Vereinigung Cockpit pilots’ union at the start of April concerning future early retirement from flight service and had therefore created a basis for further negotiations. This offer would provide all cockpit staff with the option of early retirement from flight service, including in the future.

In concrete terms, Lufthansa’s offer on transitional benefits provides for the following:

• For employees who have been working at Lufthansa since before 1 January 2014, Lufthansa will bear the costs of early retirement, including in the future. This means that employer-financed transitional benefits will be maintained for several decades.

• For employees who start or have started work at Lufthansa after 1 January 2014, it will still be possible to retire early from flight service. However, the costs of this will no longer be borne by Lufthansa, but rather by the employees. In the event of incapacity for flight service, a purely employer-financed insurance policy will still be included for all employees.

• The individual age for retiring from flight service will be raised, depending on the length of service, from 55 for more senior up to 60 for younger employees. The longer employees have already been in the company, the less affected they will be by the increase in the earliest possible individual retirement age. Employees who have been with the company for a very long time are not affected at all by the changes.

• Today, on average, cockpit crew leave Lufthansa German Airlines at the age of 59. In future, the average age for employer-financed retirement from flight service at Lufthansa German Airlines is intended to go up gradually over several years to 61. The average age of 61 reflects an overall trend in society towards a longer working life.

Copyright Photo: Brian McDonough/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 747-830 D-ABYP (msn 37839) with the special 1500th Boeing 747 markings departs from Washington (Reagan).

Lufthansa:

Lufthansa to fly the Boeing 747-800 Intercontinental on the Frankfurt-New York route

Lufthansa (Frankfurt) will assign the newer Boeing 747-800 Intercontinental on the Frankfurt-New York (JFK) route from July 15 through October 25. The 747-8I will replace an older 747-400 with daily service according to Airline Route.

Lufthansa received its first 747-830 (D-ABYA) on April 25, 2012 and introduced the new type on the Frankfurt-Washingon (Dulles) route on June 1, 2012 as we have previously reported.

Copyright Photo: Bernhard Ross/AirlinersGallery.com. Wearing the special Fanhansa titles in support for the current 2014 World Cup, Boeing 747-830 D-ABYO (msn 37841) awaits its next assignment at the Frankfurt hub.

Lufthansa:

Boeing reaches a milestone with the 747, delivers the 1,500th 747 built to Lufthansa

Boeing (Chicago and Seattle) has delivered the 1,500th 747 to come off the production line to Lufthansa (Frankfurt). The milestone airplane is a 747-8 Intercontinental, the 14th one that Lufthansa will incorporate into its long-haul fleet.

“Reaching this milestone delivery is a testament to the capabilities of the airplane and our commitment to continuous innovation,” said Eric Lindblad, 747 vice president and general manager, Boeing Commercial Airplanes. “The new 747-8 is delivering on its promise to our customers, and we continue to look at ways to make it even more efficient in the future.”

The 747 is the first widebody airplane in history to reach the 1,500 milestone. Its iconic shape makes it instantly recognizable, and passengers have consistently voted it their favorite airplane to fly.

At a delivery ceremony yesterday (June 28), a special logo commemorating the 1,500th airplane was revealed for the first time on the pictured 747-830 D-ABYP (msn 37839).

“Lufthansa is honored that the 1,500th 747 will fly with the Lufthansa livery,” said Nico Buchholz, executive vice president, Lufthansa Group Fleet Management. “Lufthansa is an important partner and a valued advisor in developing new commercial airplanes with exceptional economical and ecological performance such as the 747-8. The commemorative logo will be a reminder of our relationship with Boeing, now and into the future.”

Lufthansa is the launch customer of the 747-8 Intercontinental and took delivery of its first airplane in April 2012. The airline has 19 747-8 Intercontinentals on order.

The first Boeing 747-100 entered revenue service on January 22, 1970 with Pan Am on the New York–London route.

Lufthansa German Airlines on March 10, 1970 became the first European airline to take delivery of the Boeing 747-100. The first LH 747, 747-130 D-ABYA (msn 19746), was accepted on this historic day. The Jumbo was introduced into revenue service between Frankfurt and New York (JFK) on April 26, 1970. LH has operated a variant of the 747 for over 44 years.

Lufthansa also issued this statement:

Lufthansa’s 14th Boeing 747-8 landed in Frankfurt on Sunday, June 29, at 9.17 a.m. as scheduled. As well as being the 76th Jumbo that Lufthansa has received from the American manufacturer Boeing in Seattle since the 1970s, the aircraft also represents a veritable milestone in aviation history. This aircraft, whose tail number is D-ABYP (“Yankee Papa”), is the 1,500th Jumbo to be built in the world.

‘It’s an honor for Lufthansa that the anniversary Jumbo will fly in the colors of the Lufthansa crane,’ said Nico Buchholz, Head of Group Fleet Management at Deutsche Lufthansa AG. ‘For decades, Lufthansa has been one of the aircraft manufacturer’s closest advisers – a pioneer when it comes to developing new, environmentally friendly and fuel-efficient aircraft,’ added Buchholz at the handover in Seattle. Lufthansa is expecting to receive a total of 19 aircraft of this type, and will therefore be the world’s largest operator of 747-8s among passenger airlines.

The “Dash 8”, as it is also known, has plenty to offer. By using the latest Jumbo, Lufthansa is taking a further step towards having a “three-liter fleet” (per passenger and 100 kilometers). The aircraft is 15 percent more fuel-efficient than its predecessor model and, as a result, its CO2 emissions are around 15 percent lower. The noise footprint of the Boeing 747-8 is 30 percent smaller compared with the older Boeing 747-400. What started as the first training flight with the new Boeing 747 over the mountains east of Seattle in October 1969 went on to become an icon of the Lufthansa fleet, and, indeed, of commercial aviation as a whole.

On March 9, 1970, the then Lufthansa CEO Herbert Culmann took delivery of the first Lufthansa Boeing 747-130 in front of the factory in Everett. The aircraft’s production number was 12 and its Lufthansa registration was D-ABYA. Lufthansa thereby became the second international airline, after Pan Am, and the first European carrier to deploy the Jumbo on scheduled services. The aircraft was host to several major world premières in succession, including the first film shown on board a Jumbo jet. Only twenty months after the maiden flight of the Boeing 747-130, the fourth Lufthansa Jumbo took off on April 2, 1971 as a modified model. Boeing had equipped the 747-200 with larger fuel tanks and a higher take-off weight of 378 tons. This meant that the aircraft had a longer range. Originally intended as a military aircraft, the Jumbo’s career was not limited to carrying passengers. On April 10, 1972, Lufthansa received the world’s first “smiling” Boeing as the launch customer of the cargo version, the Boeing 747-230F. The nose of the aircraft could be opened horizontally, making it possible to load even bulk goods without any problem. On April 19, 1972, the world’s first cargo Jumbo took off, bearing the tail number D-ABYE. This quickly catapulted Lufthansa to number one in airfreight transport.

‘A step towards the 1990s’ is how Lufthansa CEO Heinz Ruhnau described the purchase agreement signed on June 23, 1986 for an initial order of six enhanced Boeing aircraft. Lufthansa had already been involved in the planning of the Boeing 747-100. However, as the first airline to order the “Dash 400” (Boeing 747-400), it now played a key part in the development of the new aircraft, providing many hundreds of suggestions for improvements and more than 20,000 engineer hours. With this aircraft, the modern, digitalized two-man cockpit that Jürgen Weber, the man responsible for aircraft development at Lufthansa Technik in Hamburg at the time and later Chairman of the Executive Board and CEO of Lufthansa AG, and Reinhard Abraham, the former Chief Technical Officer of the Lufthansa Group, had worked to achieve became a reality. Upwards-pointing winglets, new and more economical engines, new materials such as composite materials and aluminium alloys: all of these innovations helped to cut fuel consumption by 24 percent compared with the -200 series.

On 23 May 1989, Lufthansa received the first enhanced Super Jumbo with tail number D-ABVA. The aircraft could cover almost 13,000 kilometers in 16 hours and thus reach nearly every destination in the world. As the new millennium started, the idea was put forth to develop an enhanced version of the Boeing 747-400. And so not only was the Jumbo extended by 5.6 meters, it was also totally redeveloped, including a new wing design and new engines. On May 2, 2012, Lufthansa became the first passenger airline in the world to receive a Boeing 747-8.

Copyright Photo: Bernie Leighton/AirlinersGallery.com. Boeing 747-830 D-ABYP with the special “1500th” emblem prepares to depart from Paine Field near Everett yesterday (June 28) on its delivery flight to Frankfurt.

Boeing 747 Slide Show:

Lufthansa:

Boeing delivers the 75th Boeing 747 to Lufthansa

Lufthansa (Frankfurt) and Boeing (Chicago and Seattle) celebrated the delivery of the German airline’s 75th 747 on Wednesday (April 30).

Lufthansa is the launch customer for the 747-8 Intercontinental jetliner and took delivery of the first one in April 2012. The airplane delivered Wednesday is Lufthansa’s 13th 747-8 Intercontinental, namely 747-830 D-ABYO (msn 37841). The airline currently flies the 747 to 22 destinations in 10 countries. Over the years, Lufthansa has ordered a total of 81 747s.

Lufthansa’s first 747 – a 747-100 – was delivered in 1970. The airline was also the first to order the 747-200 Freighter.

The 747-8 has accumulated 120 orders for passenger and cargo versions, 68 of which have been delivered.

Top Copyright Photo: Boeing. This poor-quality publicity photo shows D-ABYO departing from Paine Field.

Lufthansa:

Bottom Copyright Photo: Bruce Drum/AirlinersGallery.com. It all started with the Boeing 747-130. The pictured Boeing 747-130 D-ABYA (msn 19746) at New York (JFK) was delivered new to LH as the first 747 on March 10, 1970.