Tag Archives: Germanwings

Lufthansa Group details its winter schedules changes with 18,900 flights a week

Lufthansa Group (Frankfurt) has announced the details of its combined schedules for the winter season:

The airlines in the Lufthansa Group – Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Germanwings, Lufthansa and Swiss International Air Lines – are again offering their customers a dense and high-frequency route network in the upcoming 2014/2015 winter flight timetable, with 18,900 flights a week. This winter, the Lufthansa Group airlines will be linking 260 destinations in 100 countries on four continents via its hubs in Frankfurt, Munich, Zurich, Vienna and Brussels, but also with many point-to-point connections. Around 20,500 weekly code-share flights with other partner airlines extend the carriers’ respective programmes and enable single-source bookings. The winter flight timetables for the individual Group airlines apply from Sunday, October 26, 2014 to Saturday, March 28, 2015. Thanks to the use of larger aircraft, the Group’s capacity in available seat-kilometers is increasing by 2.9 percent compared with the same period last year. At the same time, the number of flights in the period of the timetable is going down by 2.9 percent. On average, therefore, a Lufthansa Group aircraft is taking off somewhere around the world every 32 seconds. The individual route networks of the Group airlines are increasingly converging with one another. Almost all destinations are connected via a Lufthansa Group hub. End-to-end fares enable passengers to book multiple journeys with convenient and punctual connecting flights. 49 per cent of the nearly 105 million passengers a year now book a transfer connection via a Lufthansa hub. 19 European airports are even served by all five airlines in the Lufthansa Group.

Key news from the five Lufthansa Group airlines:

Lufthansa

This winter, Lufthansa is extending its route network to attractive new holiday destinations in warmer regions. After a break of over 15 years, Lufthansa is resuming flights to Las Palmas in the Canary Islands this winter. From October 26, the new connection will take off from Munich to Gran Canaria every Sunday, and every Saturday during school holidays too. Also new in the winter months are flights from Munich to Split (Croatia) and Valencia (Spain). As of October 2, Lufthansa also flies from Frankfurt to the Moroccan city of Marrakesh. This cultural city is situated at the foot of the Atlas Mountains in the Moroccan interior and can be reached in just under four hours with an Airbus A320 every Thursday and Sunday. A further addition to the flight plan from Munich is Miami in Florida, the US sunshine state, which will now have a daily nonstop connection. Delhi, the Indian capital, will also get a daily service from Frankfurt with the Airbus A380. The Frankfurt-Luanda connection to the capital of Angola will be strengthened by a third weekly flight. Starting on 15 December, Lufthansa and Deutsche Bahn will extend their joint AiRail product of fast ICE train connections to Frankfurt Airport from Karlsruhe and Kassel.

Swiss International Air Lines

In the winter flight timetable 2014/2015, Swiss is adapting its flight plans to winter demand. As well as seasonal reductions of some flights, Swiss is increasing its capacity to popular holiday destinations. The long-haul route between Zurich and Miami is to receive four extra Swiss flights a week, taking the total to fourteen weekly connections. Services to São Paolo, the biggest city in Brazil, will also be increased by three flights a week this winter, taking the total to ten weekly connections. The flight timetable will also include a daily connection to Los Angeles again. In Geneva, Swiss is continuing many destinations from its summer flight timetable throughout the winter, including Copenhagen, Rome, Lisbon and Pristina.

Austrian Airlines

In its 2014/2015 winter flight schedule, Austrian Airlines is again offering its passengers a wide range of up to 100 destinations in 56 countries around the world. Following the successful introduction of Newark (USA) last July, Austrian Airlines will increase its weekly capacity from five flights to six flights a week as of April 2015, and to one flight a day from June. From June 2015, Austrian will therefore be flying daily to all its North American destinations. As a result of high demand in transit traffic, Austrian Airlines is also increasing the frequency of its flights to and from Chişinău from seven a week to a maximum of ten a week in the future.

Brussels Airlines

Belgium’s largest airline is adding a new European destination to its winter flight timetable and improving many connections by adding additional flights: Riga, the capital of Latvia, will be served six times a week from Brussels as of October 26. Riga is one of the most important cultural and economic centres in the Baltic region and is hosting the EU presidency in the first half of 2015. Brussels Airlines is boosting its capacity with additional flights from Brussels to: Tel Aviv, Madrid, Marrakesh, Budapest, Geneva, Vilnius, Hanover and Bologna. Connections are also being improved to the African destinations of Douala, Yaoundé, Nairobi, Kigali, Bujumbura and Luanda.

Germanwings

In its winter flight timetable, Germanwings is offering a total of 84 destinations from Berlin-Tegel, Dortmund, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Cologne/Bonn and Stuttgart. Additional capacity will still focus on Düsseldorf, where Germanwings is taking over more routes from Lufthansa. There are new high-frequency connections from the Rhineland metropolis to Berlin (57 flights a week), London-Heathrow (33 flights a week) and Zurich (24 flights a week). Also new from Düsseldorf are flights to Málaga (two flights a week), Naples (three flights a week), Nice (two flights a week), Moscow (seven flights a week) and Rome (five flights a week). The transfer of Lufthansa routes to Germanwings will be completed on January 8, 2015 with Düsseldorf – Zurich. Germanwings is also introducing a completely new route, Düsseldorf – Istanbul, with two weekly flights. Its programme in the German capital is also being extended with the takeover of two Lufthansa flights a week between Berlin-Tegel and Tel Aviv. With one flight a week, the German airline is also launching a new connection from Cologne/Bonn to the Cypriot port of Larnaca.

Copyright Photo: Ton Jochems/AirlinersGallery.com. Lower cost Germanwings is taking most of the Dusseldorf routes from Lufthansa. Airbus A320-211 D-AIQH (msn 217) taxies at Antalya.

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Austrian:

Brussels:

Germanwings:

Lufthansa lays out its strategy to allow the Lufthansa Group to grow in the future

Lufthansa (Lufthansa Group) (Frankfurt) has announced its on-going strategy for dealing with changing dynamic challenges in the marketplace. Key points include; Making Lufthansa a competitive five star airline (i.e. to compete against the Gulf carriers), Eurowings will operate up to 23 Airbus A320s with a new base at Basel, Germanwings‘ fleet will grow to 60 aircraft, a new lower cost long-haul option and how to reduce the cost of flying the Airbus A340s (above). Here is the full report:

Deutsche Lufthansa AG has set itself the objective of regaining its role as the benchmark of the aviation sector and, with it, the first choice for customers, employees, investors and partners.

The company has now unveiled an extensive range of actions to this end which will enable it to derive greater benefit from the continued growth of the global air transport market.

These include new platforms and products for both intercontinental and European air services, an intensified partnership with Air China, an even stronger focus on quality and innovation and a groupwide drive to create more efficient structures and processes.

“The global market for air transport continues to grow,” says Carsten Spohr, Chairman of the Executive Board & CEO of Deutsche Lufthansa AG. “But in the dynamic and highly price-sensitive market segments, our current platforms only enable us to exploit the growth potential to a limited extent, in view of their sometimes over-rigid cost structures. That’s why we are now seeking to tap new growth areas, by creatively and innovatively refining our products and services in both the airline sector and – especially – related markets. By 2020 we aim to have raised our revenues from our new businesses, our new platforms and our service companies from the present 30% to 40% of our total revenue flow.”

“We don’t want to be driven by change in the aviation sector: we want to be among the drivers of it,” Spohr continues. “But doing so demands bold steps forward: our market is no place for half-measures. The Lufthansa Group has often set our industry’s standards in the past. And I see no reason why we shouldn’t do so in the future. After all, we have the best of foundations for achieving this: we are a widely diversified aviation group with strong brands; we have a very loyal customer base; and we can count on highly qualified employees who are the envy of our competitors.”

“Our current SCORE program has also equipped us with an ability to change,” Spohr points out. “And we now aim to use this to forge our corporate future.” The work here has involved defining seven ‘action areas’ – not only in the marketplace but also in terms of its internal structures and processes – which should enable the Group to make fuller and more fruitful use of its combined strengths and resources. Priority is also being given within these action areas to the Group’s new growth concepts and to the key issues of innovation and quality, though improving its competitive credentials also remains high on the agenda.

“The fundamental SCORE notion of continuously reducing our unit costs must remain equally valid when the program ends as scheduled in 2015,” Carsten Spohr emphasizes. “And to that end, we will be making this a permanent groupwide concern. We must constantly generate new ideas to improve our profitability, sharpen our competitive edge and keep us the first choice for our customers.”

New growth concepts

The Lufthansa Group will be establishing new platforms with competitive cost structures to ensure that it derives maximum benefit from the further growth of the aviation sector. Thus, the Group’s present multi-brand system with its multiple hubs of Frankfurt, Munich, Zurich, Vienna and Brussels will now be consistently complemented by the new “WINGS” multi-platform concept in all the Group’s European home markets. The new WINGS family, which will build on the success of the Germanwings concept, will be specifically aligned to the high-growth market for private air travel. The Group will use the new WINGS master brand to bundle the various platforms for its point-to-point air travel business; and it is considering extending the concept to intercontinental services, too.

Amalgamating the European members of the WINGS family – a move which will also include Germanwings – will permit an aligned management of all these operations. With Germanwings, Lufthansa will also complete the planned transfer of all of its routes not serving its Frankfurt or Munich hubs by next spring. The Germanwings fleet will also be further enlarged to up to 60 aircraft.

With Eurowings as its starting platform, the Lufthansa Group will develop a competitive European air travel product for continental travel. Since the competitive cost structures required cannot be achieved with the present fleet of Bombardier CRJ aircraft, these will be replaced with Airbus A320 equipment. Eurowings will operate up to 23 A320s, and its services are set to be launched in spring 2015. The first Eurowings base outside Germany will be in Basel, Switzerland, and will have a fleet of an additional two to four A320s. It should commence operations early next year.

The Lufthansa Group also plans to create a competitive new long-haul platform under the WINGS banner for the price-sensitive segment of private travel. Studies are currently being conducted into whether this should be done alone or with a further partner: for the latter option, talks are already at an advanced stage with Turkish Airlines. In an initial phase, the new intercontinental platform is expected to operate with a fleet that will gradually be built up to seven Boeing 767 or Airbus A330 aircraft, with operations likely to commence in winter 2015.

In a further move, Lufthansa is considering to what extent up to nine of its Airbus A340s could be operated at substantially lower unit costs, either on new routes or on routes currently threatened with closure. Negotiations are under way with all the internal and external stakeholders involved to achieve the cost reductions required.

Ultimately, the extent to which these new platforms and formats can be developed in the longer term will depend on their profitability and their market success.

Elsewhere, Lufthansa is working intensively to further develop its bilateral partnerships with other air carriers. In this connection it has just concluded a new agreement with Star Alliance partner Air China for closer collaboration on the MRO and passenger services fronts and, ultimately, a joint-venture arrangement. It is Lufthansa’s declared objective to offer its customers in the four biggest markets and economies outside its home markets the best product available, in collaboration with its local partners.
As a unique aviation group, the Lufthansa Group will also be devoting sizeable resources to further developing its various service companies. World market leaders Lufthansa Technik and LSG Sky Chefs are also benefiting from the expansions of numerous Lufthansa competitors, especially the Gulf-based carriers, and thus serve as a natural “hedge” in the global competitive landscape.

Lufthansa Technik and LSG Sky Chefs will be investing in expanding their business, with a focus on Asia and the Americas. LSG Sky Chefs also aims to increase its involvement in related markets beyond the aviation sector, such as the rail catering segment. Miles & More, too, offers significant further growth potential; and the Lufthansa Group’s customer loyalty program will now be refined to enhance its appeal to “less frequent flyers”, and also to offer more mileage earning and redemption options.

Quality and innovation

Quality and innovation are priority concerns on the overall agenda of the Lufthansa Group. And Executive Board Chairman & CEO Carsten Spohr will bear direct responsibility for the Group’s planned innovation and quality drive. Lufthansa intends to invest a total of EUR 500 million in innovations groupwide between now and 2020. The plans here should see a new “innovation hub” established this year in Berlin, closer to the start-up and digital technology scene; and an “innovation fund” will also be set up to expedite the development of promising new ideas from both within and outside the Group.

Lufthansa not only wants to become the first “five-star carrier” in the Western Hemisphere; it also aims to achieve quality leadership in all its various markets. The quality drive here will include bringing greater personalization to its products and services, with the aim of tripling the present revenues from its additional services between now and 2020.

Outlook

Despite the investments that the raft of actions announced will entail, the Lufthansa Group remains confident of its revised business projections for 2014 and 2015. The Executive Board expects to report an operating profit of around EUR 1 billion for the current year, or EUR 1.3 billion after adjustments for one-off effects.

A series of structural actions will need to be taken soon, however, if the financial goals for 2014 and 2015 are to be achieved. Thus, Lufthansa will reduce its 2014 available-seat-kilometer capacity growth by over 50% compared to original plans, and will be withdrawing five aircraft from its European network and three from its intercontinental routes in the 2014/15 winter timetable period.

Lufthansa Cargo’s capacity will also be reduced this winter through the withdrawal of two Boeing MD-11 freighters.

The Lufthansa Executive Board is confident that the raft of actions planned will go a long way towards securing the Lufthansa Group’s continued viability and further success.

Copyright Photo: Bernhard Ross/AirlinersGallery.com. What to do with the Airbus A340s? Lufthansa is considering its options with the now aging fleet of Airbus A340s. Airbus A340-311 D-AIGC (msn 027) taxies at the Frankfurt base in the Star Alliance motif.

Lufthansa:

Lufthansa reports on the first year of the “new Germanwings”

Lufthansa (Frankfurt) has issued this information report on the first anniversary of the revamped Germanwings (2nd) (Cologne/Bonn):

For exactly one year now, the “new Germanwings” has enhanced the range of flights on offer for customers throughout Europe. On July 1, 2013, it launched an entirely new product and brand concept, and over the space of twelve months it has developed to become the third largest airline in Germany. Since July 2013, Germanwings has carried more than 16 million passengers. The number of routes on offer has also risen from 182 to 296 today. Germanwings now serves 130 destinations, most of which are in Europe.

Lufthansa amalgamated its domestic German and European flights that were not operated through its Frankfurt and Munich hubs in the “new Germanwings”. The handover of flight routes is now well advanced. In Cologne, Stuttgart and Hanover it has been completed, while in Hamburg and Berlin a few routes are still being transferred. Lufthansa began transferring routes to Germanwings in Düsseldorf in March 2014. Once the hand-over has been completed, Düsseldorf will be the largest Germanwings base.

Germanwings passengers rate the airline highly positively. In all the passenger surveys, they attest to the airline’s high-quality service, and the vast majority is extremely satisfied with the new offer. Customers thus reinforce Germanwings’ claim to be a low-cost-carrier offering flights at low prices and a high-quality service.

The expansion of Germanwings has also been successful from a commercial point of view: in comparison to last year, when the airline contributed €93 million to the Lufthansa Group’s earnings improvement year-on-year, the contribution is expected to increase again this year. For 2015, for the first time in many years, the Group expects to achieve a balanced result on its non-hub routes in Europe.

The airline, which is based at Cologne-Bonn Airport, has also significantly expanded its fleet. While just one year ago 38 jets bore the Germanwings livery, 71 aircraft can now be seen sporting the logo of the youngest airline in the Lufthansa Group. A further ten aircraft will join the fleet by the end of the year. The workforce has also increased from 1,600 to just over 2,000, the bulk of new staff recruitment being in flight operations. The number of flight personnel has thus risen from 1,174 to 1,614. Germanwings crews currently complete a total of 3,312 flights each week, compared with 1,891 a mere twelve months ago. Since its launch a year ago, Germanwings with its highly motivated team has already completed around 171,000 safe take-offs and landings. Carsten Spohr, Chairman of the Executive Board of Deutsche Lufthansa AG: “We have been on the offensive with the ‘new Germanwings’ in terms of point-to-point flights on European and German domestic routes that are not operated through our major hubs. We have combined our many years of experience in the low-cost segment and our high quality standards to develop a convincing concept that has been extremely well received by customers. With the ‘new Germanwings’, we have taken an important step and are now closer to achieving our goal of flying profitably beyond the major hubs within the short-haul traffic segment.”

Thomas Winkelmann, spokesman for the Germanwings Executive Board: “Germanwings is without a doubt one of the most creative airlines in Europe. Twelve months ago we entered new territory with Germanwings’ new product and brand promise. Since then, we have been combining the various requirements of different customer groups in one airline. Today we know that this bold decision was the right one: everyone feels at home on board of Germanwings. This is undoubtedly because we refuse to compromise on two points: safety and the friendly and expert way in which we deal with our customers.”

A unique feature of Germanwings is ‘à la carte flying’. When booking their tickets, passengers have a choice of three products in different price segments with different comfort add-ons: ‘BEST’ represents the high-end offer that primarily covers the needs of business passengers but that also appeals to certain leisure travelers. The ‘SMART’ fare product includes certain extra services, and ‘BASIC’ is a no-frills, low-cost fare.

Copyright Photo: Javier Rodriguez/AirlinersGallery.com. The Germanwings fleet has expanded from 38 to 71 Airbus aircraft in the past year. Formerly with Lufthansa, Airbus A320-211 D-AIQS (msn 401) now flies for lower-cost Germanwings.

Lufthansa:

Germanwings (2nd):

Germanwings to fly the Dusseldorf-London Stansted route

Germanwings (2nd) (Cologne/Bonn) will fly the Dusseldorf-London (Stansted) route starting on August 22. According to Airline Route, the route will initally be operated with Bombardier CRJ900s but will be upgraded to the pictured Airbus A319 starting on October 26.

Copyright Photo: Rolf Wallner/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A319-132 D-AGWS (msn 4998) holds short of the runway at Zurich Kloten Airport (ZRH).

Germanwings:

Lufthansa Group reports a lower first quarter operating loss of $341 million

Deutsche Lufthansa AG (Lufthansa Group) (Lufthansa) (Frankfurt) achieved a further increase in its operating result for the first quarter of 2014, thanks to continued progress with its Score results-enhancement program. In what is traditionally the weakest quarter of the year, the company posted an operating result of EUR -245 million ($341 million), a EUR 114 million ($158.7 million) or 31.8% improvement on the same period last year. Adjusted for non-recurring items, such as the cost for the accelerated installation of new Lufthansa Business Class seats, which accounted for some EUR 55 million in this period alone, the first-quarter operating result was improved by EUR 105 million to EUR -190 million ($264.5 million). The improved quarterly operating result can be largely attributed to an increase in profits at Lufthansa Technik and the positive impact of the revised depreciation policy for aircraft and spare engines which was adopted at the beginning of the year. In addition, the Lufthansa Group also improved its cost structures in the passenger segment.

Adjusted to eliminate fuel-price and currency factors, first-quarter unit costs for the passenger business segment were a 3.7% improvement on their prior-year level. The Group has set itself the goal of reducing such costs by 4% for 2014 as a whole by implementing various Score-related actions. Total revenue for the quarter amounted to EUR 6.5 billion, a 2.5% decline on the prior-year period. Lower traffic revenues were generated for the period, not least as a result of adverse currency movements. The revenue result was achieved with a 1.2% reduction in total flights operated, owing mainly to fleet modernizations and the use of larger aircraft. The net result for the period amounted to EUR -252 million, a substantial EUR 206 million or 45.0% improvement on the first quarter of 2013.

“This is a sound first-quarter performance and a slight improvement in our results for the period in a difficult market environment,” says Simone Menne, CFO and Member of the Executive Board at Deutsche Lufthansa AG. “We have improved our cost structures, and have taken various actions to enhance the quality of our revenues. And we will continue with our consistent efforts to further raise our efficiency.”

The Lufthansa Group has further confirmed its previous expectation of posting an operating profit of between EUR 1.3 and 1.5 billion for 2014 as a whole. The Group also remains confident of reporting a 2014 operating result adjusted for non-recurring items of between EUR 1.7 and 1.9 billion. The projections remain unchanged despite the Verdi strikes at German airports in March and the three-day strike at Lufthansa, Germanwings and Lufthansa Cargo by the Vereinigung Cockpit pilots’ union in April, which reduced Group earnings by over EUR 70 million.

“Our advance passenger bookings saw sizeable declines during the Vereinigung Cockpit pilots’ strike,” Menne continues. “And, with the competition we face on our European network and the strong pricing pressures on our North American routes, we haven’t yet been able to raise them again. So, despite the currently tense market environment, we are doing our utmost to recoup these earnings losses in our ongoing business.” Some assistance should be provided here by the fall in fuel prices: full-year estimates for this cost item are now lower following the first-quarter results than they were in March.

The Group’s Passenger Airlines business segment reported an operating result for the quarter of EUR -332 million, a EUR 31 million improvement on the same period last year. The progress here was partially due to the revised Group depreciation policy, whose lower costs added EUR 86 million to the quarterly result. At the same time, the decline in revenue per available seat-kilometre was offset by cost economies, which were reflected in a clear reduction in cost per available seat-kilometre. Among the Group’s member airlines, Lufthansa and Germanwings posted a quarterly operating result of EUR -286 million (a EUR 6 million year-on-year improvement), Swiss International Air Lines (Zurich) achieved an operating profit of EUR 6 million (up EUR 22 million) and Austrian Airlines (Vienna) posted an operating result of EUR -54 million (a EUR 2 million improvement on the prior-year period).

Lufthansa Technik made the most positive contribution to the Lufthansa Group’s first-quarter results, with an operating profit for the period of EUR 97 million, a EUR 16 million improvement on January-to-March 2013. The Group’s IT Services segment raised its first-quarter operating result by EUR 2 million to EUR 5 million. LSG SkyChefs reported a first-quarter operating result of EUR -4 million, a EUR 7 million year-on-year decline which was in part attributable to adverse currency movements. And with rigorous cost discipline in a still-tough market environment, Lufthansa Cargo achieved a solid operating profit of EUR 21 million, which compares to EUR 28 million for the prior-year period.

The first quarter of 2014 in figures

Total revenue for the first three months of 2014 amounted to EUR 6.5 billion, a 2.5% decline on the same period last year. Total operating income also declined 2.5%, to EUR 7.0 billion. At the same time, total first-quarter operating expenditure was reduced 6.0% to EUR 7.2 billion. Fuel costs for the quarter declined by EUR 157 million or 9.4% to EUR 1.5 billion. The figure includes a EUR 20 million loss from fuel price hedging activities. Fees and charges were 0.8% below their prior-year level, owing in particular to the lower flight volumes.

The Lufthansa Group achieved an operating result of EUR -245 million for the first quarter of 2014, a period that is traditionally the weakest of the year. The net result for the quarter amounted to EUR -252 million, a substantial EUR 206 million improvement on the first three months of 2013. First-quarter earnings per share rose from the EUR -1.00 of 2013 to EUR -0.55.

The Lufthansa Group increased its investments in modernizing and maintaining its aircraft fleet to EUR 755 million in the first-quarter period. All in all, the Group invested EUR 859 million, some EUR 141 million more than in the same period last year. Cash flow from operating activities totalled EUR 855 million, while free cash flow (operating cash flow less net capital expenditure) amounted to EUR 195 million. Net debt stood at EUR 1.6 billion, down EUR 61 million year-on-year. The balance sheet equity ratio as calculated in accordance with the new IAS 19 capitalization principles amounted to 17.9%, up 2.5 percentage points from the first quarter of 2013.

Top Copyright Photo: Michael B. Ing/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A340-642X D-AIHV (msn 897) of Lufthansa completes its final approach to the runway at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).

Lufthansa:

Germanwings:

Bottom Copyright Photo: Paul Bannwarth/AirlinersGallery.com. The Lufthansa Group continues to shift more non-hub European flying to the lower-cost Germanwings. Airbus A319-132 D-AGWU (msn 5457) lands at EuroAirport.

Lufthansa Group’s fuel consumption drops, transfers more Dusseldorf routes to Germanwings

Lufthansa Group (Lufthansa) (Frankfurt) has issued this statement concerning fuel consumption:

In 2013 the passenger airlines in the Lufthansa Group beat the four-liter mark for the first time, with an average consumption of just 3.91 liters of kerosene per passenger per 100 kilometers. This is an improvement of 3.8 per cent over 2012. In short, the aviation group achieved over twice the annual efficiency target increase of 1.5 per cent set for the airline industry.

The second piece of good news: Absolute fuel consumption of the Lufthansa Group fell for the second time in a row since 2012, by 1.3 percent year on year, despite a production increase of 2.3 percent. In absolute terms, the Group’s fuel use decreased 114,152 tons compared to 2012 and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions fell by more than 359,587 tons, a benefit for the environment. This is roughly equivalent to the CO2 volume emitted annually by oil-fired heating systems in about 50,000 homes.

The Lufthansa Group is working continuously and systematically to improve the environmental impact of its international services. A department set up in 2013 specifically to improve fuel efficiency is currently examining almost 1,000 individual steps for realising further potential savings. They include programs to achieve lasting weight reductions on board, testing and implementing new flight methods and developing intelligent software tools.

The most powerful lever for increasing efficiency is investing in technological progress, i.e. in the latest and most efficient aircraft. With its current fleet renewal program, the biggest in the history of the Lufthansa Group, the company is making good progress in this direction. As of December 31, 2013, the Group had a total of 261 aircraft on its order list for delivery by 2025 – this represents capital expenditure of EUR 32 billion at list prices. It will also make life much easier for those living near major air traffic hubs. For example, the 100 aircraft from the A320neo family ordered by the Lufthansa Group are fitted with highly efficient, quieter engines and reduce the noise footprint of take-off and landing by around 50 per cent.

In other news, the Lufthansa Group is transferring additional routes from Dusseldorf to Germanwings (2nd) (Cologne/Bonn) in the fall. Route transfers according to Airline Route from DUS:

Dusseldorf – Paris (CDG) (effective September 18)

Dusseldorf – Vienna (October 8)

Dusseldorf – London (Heathrow) (October 26)

Dusseldorf – Malaga (October 26)

Dusseldorf – Moscow (Vnukovo) (October 26)

Dusseldorf – Naples (October 26)

Dusseldorf – Nice (October 26)

Copyright Photo: Andi Hiltl/AirlinersGallery.com. Additional aircraft are being transferred to lower-cost Germanwings. Formerly operated by mainline Lufthansa, Germanwing’s Airbus A320-211 D-AIQK (msn 218) lands at Zurich.

Germanwings:

Lufthansa:

Germanwings adds two more routes to London Heathrow

Germanwings (2nd) (Cologne/Bonn) yesterday (January 20) added two former Lufthansa routes to London (Heathrow) from both Berlin (Tegel) and Hamburg.

Germanwings:

Germanwings drops three routes from Berlin in January

Germanwings (2nd) (Cologne/Bonn) will drop all service from Berlin (Tegel) to Bucharest, Geneva and Stockholm (Arlanda) in the first week of January per Airline Route.

Copyright Photo: Paul Bannwarth/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A319-132 D-AGWU (msn 5457) departs from Basel/Mulhouse/Freiburg.

Germanwings:

Germanwings adds new routes from Berlin Tegel and Hamburg

Germanwings (2nd) (Cologne/Bonn) on October 27 will add more routes and schedules for Berlin (Tegel), Hamburg, Cologne/Bonn, Hannover, Stuttgart and Nuremberg as the Lufthansa subsidiary expands as planned.

Here is a list of the Germanwings new winter 2013/2014 routes:

Copyright Photo: Paul Bannwarth/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A319-132 D-AGWU (msn 5457) climbs away from the runway at EuroAirport, serving the Basel/Mulhouse/Freiburg in three countries.

Germanwings:

The new Germanwings is launched today

Germanwings (2nd) (Cologne/Bonn) as a subsidiary of Lufthansa, relaunched operations today (July 1) as a re-invented airline, taking over many former Lufthansa routes and offering three levels of fares and services.

The airline issued this statement:

Today sees the launch of the new Germanwings offering a wider selection of flight services. As well as our popular BASIC and SMART fares, as of today you can book our new BEST fare. You can choose to book a flight by itself with no extra services or our premium offer with everything included. The choice is yours. One thing won’t change, though, and that’s our very low fares.

It doesn’t end there. Germanwings is expanding. Over the next few months we will be taking over a good deal of Lufthansa’s German and European routes. This means in the future you’ll have even more connections to select from, in particular from Berlin, Hamburg and Düsseldorf.

We will now be able to offer you even more destinations. All LH-flights from Stuttgart and Cologne have already been transferred, and over the coming year other flights from Hamburg and Berlin will follow. In 2014 more destinations from Düsseldorf will expand our network even further.

We hope to see you on board and experience Germanwings as it is reborn.

Copyright Photo: Ton Jochems/AirlinersGallery.com. Airbus A319-132 D-AGWN (msn 3841) awaits its takeoff clearance for the runway at Palma de Mallorca.

Germanwings: