Berlin
Lufthansa Group Expands Flight Schedule
Eurowings has expanded the number of flights during the summer flight schedule by around 50 percent. Lufthansa, Swiss and Austrian Airlines have grown by 36 percent – and thus increased their long-haul options.
LONG-HAUL FLIGHT MARKET SHARES WITH ONE TRANSFER FROM BERLIN IN 2017
In 2017, around 870,000 passengers reached their long-haul destinations from Berlin with one transfer. More than one in four passengers flew with the Lufthansa Group.
Lufthansa Group with 20 subsidiaries on site
In Berlin, the Lufthansa Group is much more than a group airline. The company has 20 subsidiaries and associated companies on site, from Lufthansa Systems to the headquarters of the worldwide call centre network at Tempelhofer Hafen. Since 1990, the group has invested around 900 million euros in the capital region.
Every day, 60 Lufthansa Group aircraft fly to Frankfurt, Munich, Vienna, Zurich and Brussels. With just one transfer, you can fly to 120 destinations worldwide from Berlin. In 2017, 240,000 passengers benefited from this offer. No other airline has flown as many passengers from Berlin to destinations outside of Europe.
No market for direct long-haul flights
The Lufthansa Group has repeatedly tried to offer long-haul flights from Berlin. However, this is currently not profitable. There are many different reasons for this:
Not enough business travellers: Business travellers often choose more expensive booking classes, making them indispensable for operating long-haul flights economically. No Dax-30 headquarters, few industrial companies – in Berlin this customer segment is too small.
No hub function: Long-haul flights have to be filled to capacity. To achieve this, airlines take their passengers to their hubs, from which the long-haul aircraft set off. In Germany, this is the role of the airports in Frankfurt and Munich. Part of the reason why Berlin is not one of the major hubs is historical: Lufthansa was not allowed to fly to the divided city until Germany was reunited in 1990.
Profitability is essential: The Lufthansa Group does not operate routes for reasons of prestige. It owes this to its staff and shareholders. Cross-subsidisation of unprofitable long-haul connections is not an option.
Gulf airlines: Berlin is not among the top 4 destinations in Germany
The timetables of non-European airlines also prove thatBerlin is difficult for long-haul flights. Emirates and Etihad are allowed to fly to four German destinations – but the capital is not one of them. There are also no direct flights from major aviation markets such as Japan, India, South Africa or Brazil, even though the route licenses are in place.
Challenge for Berlin
The Lufthansa Group is proud to be on a course for growth in its home city of Berlin. The company, like other airlines, is struggling with significant capacity bottlenecks in Tegel. For years, airport and airlines staff have been doing an extra-ordinary job in dealing with congestion at the check-in counters, gates and baggage conveyor systems. It is now vital to carry out the approved conversion work quickly and complete the new BER airport by October 2020.
LONG-HAUL FLIGHT MARKET SHARES WITH ONE TRANSFER FROM BERLIN IN 2017
In 2017, around 870,000 passengers reached their long-haul destinations from Berlin with one transfer. More than one in four passengers flew with the Lufthansa Group.
Lufthansa Group with 20 subsidiaries on site
In Berlin, the Lufthansa Group is much more than a group airline. The company has 20 subsidiaries and associated companies on site, from Lufthansa Systems to the headquarters of the worldwide call centre network at Tempelhofer Hafen. Since 1990, the group has invested around 900 million euros in the capital region.