Summer is the season that most European airlines build up most of their profits and operating margins in. In order to close the year with a profit and a positive operating margin it is of paramount importance to European airlines to have a positive Q2 and Q3. To do so it is important to offer connections that combine both passenger demand and margins. That is what Lufthansa hopes to find in its 4 new 2024 summer destinations.
Lufthansa's New Summer 2024 Destinations
Lufthansa is seen by many, me included, as not the most comfortable or exclusive airline to travel with. The experience tends to be quite impersonal and the premium cabin interiors lag behind what other carriers offer nowadays. Nonetheless the German flag carrier is one of the main options to reach almost any corner on the globe (except Australia) from Europe. The group as a whole is one of the largest in terms of passenger volumes, and strives to remain as such.
Specifically LH will be launching 4 new routes ahead of 2024 summer season. Three of the 4 new routes are from the carrier's Munich hub, with the remaining one from Frankfurt.
From Munich (MUC):
- Trondheim (TRD) – Starting April 28th 2024 with 2 weekly flights.
- Nantes (NTE) – Starting April 28th 2024 with 3 weekly flights.
- Oulu (OUL) – with 2 weekly flights throughout the summer season.
From Frankfurt (FRA):
- Chișinău (RMO) – Starting April 29th 2024 with 5 weekly flights.
Those Scandinavian destinations could prove quite interesting for the airline. It is difficult to come across direct routes in Europe to them, so Lufthansa could intercept that demand and funnel it via its hubs with a 1 stop journey.
All 4 new destinations will be served using the narrow body fleet of Airbus A320 planes. LH has fitted this aircraft family with economy class seats throughout the cabin. Business class, as is often the case in Europe, is created but blocking the central seat in the first rows of the plane, binging the actual seat usage from 3-3 to 2-2.
SAS ITA And Lufthansa Consolidation Problems
What is interesting about these 4 new routes is how 2 of them involve nordic destinations. With SAS jumping ship on Star Alliance to join Skyteam, it is easy to speculate that Lufthansa is trying to enter the market more on its own now that it can't rely on its former Scandinavian partner. For those who don't know, Air France-KLM will be taking over part of SAS with the possibility of taking control of a majority stake.
Meanwhile there is growing uncertainty regarding the LH acquisition of ITA Airways. The German carrier has for the first time alluded to the fact that with too harsh conditions imposed from Europe's antitrust authorities it won't pursue the deal. If the deal actually did breakdown it would be quite a blow for Lufthansa. Just keep in mind that Italy is the second largest market for LH, second only to Germany. I'm sure we'll have some more news on this in the coming weeks and months.
Aviation News You Want To Know In Your Inbox
Get the most important aviation news in your inbox once a week.
"*" indicates required fields
