Lufthansa City Airlines, branded as Lufthansa City,[2] is a German regional airline and a subsidiary of Lufthansa. It began operations on 26 June 2024.[3]
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| Founded | 2022 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commenced operations | 26 June 2024 | ||||||
| Hubs | Munich Airport | ||||||
| Alliance | Star Alliance (affiliate) | ||||||
| Fleet size | 5 | ||||||
| Destinations | 8[1] | ||||||
| Parent company | Lufthansa Group | ||||||
| Website | www | ||||||
History
editFoundation and background
editThe airline was founded in 2022 and began operations in June 2024,[4] operating from Munich Airport to various cities around Europe.[5] The airline received its air operator's certificate in June 2023[6] and will operate using the brand name Lufthansa City.[2]
As of October 2023, the airline plans to launch operations in the summer of 2024 with 40 narrow-body aircraft mainly an Airbus A320 fleet transferred from Lufthansa CityLine.[7] Though the fleet will originally consist of Airbus A319 aircraft, Lufthansa is also evaluating the use of Airbus A220s or Embraer jets.[8] City Airlines plans to have bases in Munich and Frankfurt. It was currently seeking crewmembers to operate its planes as of late 2023.[9]
The new subsidiary has created controversy, as Lufthansa has said that its goal with City Airlines is to fill markets that fellow subsidiary Lufthansa CityLine cannot,[10] though unions say that the airline is trying only to circumvent union agreements that limit the size of aircraft that CityLine can fly. Lufthansa is also encouraging CityLine and former Germanwings employees to apply as well.[9][11]
Start of operations
editIn January 2024, the first City Airlines Airbus A319-100 received its new livery which is similar to that of parent company Lufthansa with additional City titles. The airline plans to phase in overall four aircraft of this type prior to the delivery of its ordered Airbus A220s.[12] Shortly after, Lufthansa announced the first six destinations for City Airlines with plans for 17 more in 2025. Also the airline plans to start operations with 4-5 aircraft with one more per month added in 2025 to take over parts of the short-haul network from Lufthansa.[1]
In June 2024, Lufthansa announced it would close Lufthansa CityLine in the foreseeable future and move all its operations to Lufthansa City Airlines, citing unfavorable union contracts at CityLine.[13]
Destinations
editLufthansa City Airlines announced it would start operations within the route network of parent Lufthansa using the brand name Lufthansa City to six domestic and two European destinations in 2024.[1]
| Country | City | Airport | Notes | Refs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| France | Bordeaux | Bordeaux–Mérignac Airport | [14] | |
| Germany | Düsseldorf | Düsseldorf Airport | ||
| Hamburg | Hamburg Airport | [14] | ||
| Hanover | Hannover Airport | |||
| Munich | Munich Airport | Hub | [15] | |
| United Kingdom | Birmingham | Birmingham Airport | ||
| Manchester | Manchester Airport | [16] |
Codeshare agreements
editLufthansa City Airlines maintains Codeshare agreements with the following airlines:
Fleet
edit
As of November 2024[update], Lufthansa City Airlines operates the following aircraft:[18][19]
| Aircraft | In service | On order | Passengers[19] | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airbus A220-300 | — | 40 | TBA | Deliveries from 2026 with 20 options.[20][21] |
| Airbus A319-100 | 4 | — | 150 | relocated from Eurowings[18] |
| Airbus A320neo | 1 | — | 180 | relocated from Lufthansa CityLine[18] |
| Total | 5 | 40 | ||
References
edit- ^ a b c aerotelegraph.com (German) 27 February 2024
- ^ a b aerotelegraph.com - "City Airlines to operate as Lufthansa City" (German) 25 October 2023
- ^ "Lufthansa City Airlines starts flight operations with A320neo on June 26".
- ^ Sharma, Anurag (26 June 2024). "Lufthansa City Airlines Operated its Inaugural Flight from Munich". Aviation A2Z. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
- ^ Lutzy, Tom (17 October 2023). "Lufthansa to Equip City Airlines with 40 Narrowbody Jets". Airways. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
- ^ "Lufthansa's City Airlines secures its AOC". ch-aviation. Retrieved 26 December 2023.
- ^ "Lufthansa to equip City Airlines with 40 new narrowbodies". ch-aviation. Retrieved 26 December 2023.
- ^ Harper, Lewis. "Lufthansa evaluates A220 and E-Jets as it confirms City Airlines will fly in 2024". Flight Global. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
- ^ a b Nowakowski, Adrian (25 October 2023). "Lufthansa's City Airlines to Start Flying in Summer 2024". Airways. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
- ^ Machado, João (25 October 2023). "Lufthansa's City Airlines to launch next Summer". Aviacionline.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 26 October 2023.
- ^ "Germany will get a new airline in 2024: Where it'll fly and why unions aren't happy". Yahoo Finance. 26 October 2023. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
- ^ aerotelegraph.com 6 January 2024
- ^ aviation.direct (German) 14 June 2024
- ^ a b "Lufthansa City schedules Bordeaux / Hamburg service from late-July 2024". aeroroutes.com. Retrieved 19 July 2024.
- ^ "Lufthansa City Airlines startet Ticketverkauf im April und Flugbetrieb im Juni". Lufthansa City Airlines startet Ticketverkauf im April und Flugbetrieb im Juni (Press release) (in German). Retrieved 24 April 2024.
- ^ "Route network". Lufthansa City Airlines. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
- ^ "Lufthansa City Late June 2024 network with Lufthansa Codeshare".
- ^ a b c planspotters.net - Lufthansa City Airlines Fleet Details and History retrieved 9 November 2024
- ^ a b lufthansa-city.com - fleet retrieved 9 November 2024
- ^ "Lufthansa Group orders additional 40 Airbus A220s". Airbus (Press release). 19 December 2023.
- ^ "Lufthansa Group orders 80 new highly efficient short- and medium-haul aircraft and agrees on a further 120 purchasing options". Lufthansa Group (Press release). 19 December 2023.
