Lufthansa - Lufthansa

Brief information
IATA code	LH
Seat	Cologne, Germany
Passenger volume	around 63 million
aims	National and international
alliance	Star Alliance
Internet	www.lufthansa.com

The airline Deutsche Lufthansa AG (Lufthansa for short) is a company headquartered in Cologne. Lufthansa serves numerous destinations at home and abroad and, with its partners, offers connections to all corners of Europe and the world. Thanks to numerous holdings (including Austrian Airlines, Swiss and Brussels Airlines), Lufthansa is currently the largest airline in Europe with hubs in Frankfurt am Main and Munich as well as partner hubs in Brussels, Vienna and Zurich.

history

The company was founded in 1926.

Alliances

Lufthansa is a member of Star Alliance.

Lufthansa was one of the five founding members of what is currently the largest aviation alliance in the world, the Star Alliance. It is represented there alongside 27 other airlines and is a driving force in the development and expansion of the association. Many flights between Germany and abroad are carried out with partner companies, even if they have a Lufthansa flight number, among other things. There are also two airlines that operate for Lufthansa in the group of "Lufthansa RegionalThese are 100% subsidiaries of the company. The subsidiaries Lufthansa Cityline and Air Dolomiti currently fly under this name. In addition, several foreign airlines in Europe belong to Lufthansa, although they continue to operate under their own names Flights between Germany and Austria, for example, are always listed under the flight numbers LH and OS (each for Lufthansa and Austrian Airlines), which means that the flight number does not allow any information about which airline is actually flying the route Take an example when booking on the Lufthansa website It is also possible that you are flying with a subsidiary of Lufthansa, but not in the Star Alliance is represented. So belongs for example Germanwings 100% owned by Lufthansa, but it is not a member of the Star Alliance as a low-cost airline. The following table gives an overview of the companies in the "Lufthansa Group" that belong to the airline or operate flights on its behalf:

country	airline	Abbreviation	description	Share of participation	website
	Air Dolomiti	EN	Feeder from Northern Italy, mostly to Munich	100%	www.airdolomiti.it
	Austrian Airlines	OS	Hub Vienna, focus on Eastern Europe	100%	www.aua.com
	Brussels Airlines	SN	Hub Brussels, focus on Africa	100%	www.brusselsairlines.com
	Edelweiss Air	WK	Charter and vacation flights	100%	www.edelweissair.com
	Eurowings	EW	Feeder for the Düsseldorf hub	100%	www.eurowings.de
	Germanwings	4U	Low-cost airlines, several hubs in Germany	100%	www.germanwings.com
	Lufthansa Cityline	CL	Feeder to hubs in Germany	100%	www.lufthansacityline.com
	SunExpress	XQ	Scheduled and holiday flights, focus on Antalya, Istanbul, Izmir	50%	www.sunexpress.com
	Swiss	LX	Hub Zurich, Basel and Geneva	100%	www.swiss.com
	Swiss European	LX	Feeder for Switzerland	100%	www.swiss.com

Route network and hubs

LH aircraft at Terminal 2 in Munich.

The largest hub of Deutsche Lufthansa is the airport Frankfurt. Most of the flights take place from there and the large long-haul aircraft Boeing 747 and Airbus A380 are only stationed here (until March 2018). Lufthansa and the Star Alliance partners use Terminal 1A exclusively and there is a separate terminal for First Class guests. Lufthansa, which previously flew at the airport's capacity limit, benefited in particular from the construction of a third runway in Frankfurt.

The second most important airport for the airline is Munichwhere part of the Airbus long-haul fleet is based. Here, Lufthansa and the Star Alliance also use Terminal 2 exclusively, which is regularly recognized as one of the best in Europe and the world. In Munich, the proportion of regional aircraft is the Lufthansa Cityline and Air Dolomiti, as well as other regional partners higher, because the number of passengers is not quite as large. However, Munich Airport is much more pleasant to change trains because it is more modern and spacious.

Lufthansa is also taking off Dusseldorf and Hamburg.

Lufthansa is particularly well represented in European traffic. Thanks to its many partners, the airline offers the most extensive and densest network here, making it the largest airline on the continent. The network to North America and Asia is also traditionally strong. B. the airline with the most flights between Europe and India (ahead of Air India and British Airways). The transfer options within the pay off on these routes as well Star Alliance fully off. Up until now, the African continent has mostly concentrated on cities in South Africa and the countries bordering the Mediterranean, but now there are also a lot of flights to central African countries, especially to oil-rich countries such as Nigeria and Angola. The subsidiary is due to history Brussels Airlines very well represented here and complements the range of flights with connecting flights via Brussels. Lufthansa offers rather few flights to South America. Australia has not been served for a few years, but there are also connections via Singapore or the American west coast.

fleet

Boeing 747-400 in Frankfurt.

As of October 2017, the Lufthansa fleet comprised around 260 Airbus and Boeing aircraft and around 150 more aircraft have already been ordered. Since its delivery on May 19, 2010, the flagship has been the Airbus A380, which can carry up to 526 passengers. The one also belonging to the group Lufthansa Cityline operates about 60 aircraft. Around 300 aircraft fly at Lufthansa subsidiaries, such as Swiss or Austrian Airlines. The average age of the Lufthansa core fleet is 13.3 years (as of April 2012). On the short-haul route, Lufthansa operates the Airbus A319, Airbus A320 and Airbus A321. Lufthansa's long-haul fleet consists of the flagships Airbus A380 and Boeing 747-8i, as well as the older Boeing 747-400, Airbus A340-600, Airbus A340-300 and Airbus A330-300. In rare cases, the large long-haul aircraft are also used as an exception for European traffic.

Classes of carriage

On board Lufthansa aircraft, there are two classes of transport on short-haul routes, namely the Economy class (the colloquial "wood class") and the Business class. The two classes of transport do not differ much in terms of comfort, in the aircraft types Airbus A319-100, A320-100, A320-200, A321-100, A321-200, Boeing B737-300 and B737-500 the so-called NewEuropeCab, or NEK for short, has meanwhile been introduced , built-in. This differs from the old one in terms of thinner and weight-saving new, gray leather seats which, thanks to their thin and compact shape, also offer more legroom in both classes. In business class on short-haul routes, the middle seat is generally not occupied in these types of aircraft. It has a special head cushion labeled "Ihr Freiraum - Your Space" with an orange border so that this space remains free. In some types of aircraft, including the A321, a white-gray shelf was installed over the free seat in the first 2-3 rows. The disadvantage is that you can no longer move the armrests because the table is mounted on them. The seats in this business class are the same as those in economy class, you sometimes have a few centimeters more legroom, but you usually don't feel that at all. In the aircraft of Lufthansa CityLine or Eurowings there is a basic 2-2 seat arrangement due to the small size of the aircraft. Canadair Regional Jets, CRJ for short, of the 700ER and 900LR types are used by CityLine, and the 900LR by Eurowings. Embraer Regional Jets, ERJ for short, are used at CityLine from the types 190LR and 195LR. Also in these was partially a slightly modified NEK installed. Of course, there is also a business class in these aircraft. The window or aisle seat is then alternately kept free; here, too, these are basically economy seats. But the advantages of a business class flight are not just limited to the seats. You can check in at the "Priority Check-In" at the airport itself, which is reserved exclusively for Business Class customers and FTLs. In addition, at many or almost all airports to which LH flies, you can take a seat in the Lufthansa BusinessLounges, which offer a good range of drinks and food as well as work areas with free internet access. Toilets are of course also available. In larger hubs such as Frankfurt and Munich there are usually several business lounges. A correct selection of dishes awaits you on board, consisting of either breakfast, cold lunch, cake or a cold snack in the evening. The choice of drinks is also significantly larger than in Economy Class, with champagne being offered on most routes. After arrival, the baggage should be one of the first to get on the conveyor belt, as it is usually provided with a "priority sticker" at check-in, which is intended to encourage employees to load it in last and thus unload it first. This saves a lot of time, but this service only works to a limited extent. In terms of price, there are so-called BusinessBasicPlus tariffs, which are slightly cheaper (approx. 20%) than the BusinessFlex tariffs. In general, you pay between double and four times more for Business Class on short-haul routes, a return flight within Germany in Business Class at the Flex fare usually costs around € 750. It should also not be forgotten that in the C-Class you can of course also collect more miles. It should also be noted that in all aircraft that are used on short-haul routes, there is no fixed number of seats available for Business Class and therefore also for Eco. Depending on demand, the "ClassDivider", a dark blue curtain at Lufthansa, is set up to separate the two classes. So if 10 people are flying in Business Class, the curtain is put up behind the 3rd row (normally). Theoretically, up to 8 rows C can be set up in the Airbus A319 and A320 aircraft, in the A321 7, in the Boeing B737-300 9 and in the B737-500 8. In the regional aircraft between 4 (CRJ700) and 6.

On long-haul flights with the Airbus A330 and A340 aircraft, there is one, depending on the route First class. This high-quality premium class is the most expensive, but also the most luxurious. In the aircraft of the older Boeing 747-400 fleet, the First Class is currently being modernized and is based on the new equipment of the super-jumbo Airbus A380, which joined the fleet in 2010. However, the converted first class in the older 747 has a permanently installed bed, which is not the case in the first class version of the A380 and the new 747-8i.

In addition to better service and more seating freedom, Business and First Class passengers have other advantages, such as the use of various lounges or larger mileage credits with the frequent flyer program.

Old economy class cabin in an Airbus A320. The seats are covered with leather and are therefore particularly comfortable on short flights. The NEK seats are significantly thinner and upholstered with a darker upper material.

Economy Class in a long-haul Airbus A340. In this type of aircraft, each seat has its own screen with a large selection of movies, music, games and news.

First class in an Airbus A340. Here you have a lot more space and the seats can be adjusted in a lying position, so you can sleep relaxed. There are single and double seats.

A special offer are the Lufthansa private jets. These small business jets can be booked individually and offer a flight booking outside of the normal flight schedule. Several types of aircraft are used, each with between six and twelve seats. The flights are in collaboration with DC Aviation and Jetalliance operated from Austria. Also the private jet department of Swiss, the Swiss Private Aviation, draws on the resources of Lufthansa Private Jets.

Baggage Regulations

carry-on baggage

carry-on baggage is carried free of charge on board Lufthansa aircraft. There is a maximum size of 55x40x20 cm and a maximum weight of 8 kg. While the size of the piece of luggage is immediately apparent and therefore hand luggage that is too large is sometimes refused (asking friendly questions always helps), the weight of the luggage is almost never checked. Garment bags up to a size of 57x54x15 cm are also considered hand luggage. In Economy Class you can take one piece of hand luggage on board, in Business and First Class two pieces each. Due to legal regulations, you are currently only allowed to take one piece of hand luggage on flights to / from the UK. For flights with smaller aircraft in the regional area (Dash 8, CRJ and Dornier 328), a luggage trolley is available on the aircraft in which larger hand luggage can be stored, which is then loaded in the belly of the aircraft. This is necessary because there is only limited space on board and larger pieces of hand luggage simply do not fit in the storage compartments or under the seat in front. In addition to hand luggage, you can always take jackets, (small) handbags and laptop bags, a small camera and travel literature, as well as assistants, baby bags and food on board. Objects that can obviously be used as weapons are of course not allowed on board aircraft.

When taking Wheelchairs, as stroller and seats, Lufthansa is very customer-friendly. People with walking disabilities can not only take advantage of various services at the airport, but also have two wheelchairs or walking aids transported free of charge. A foldable stroller or a baby basket are also transported free of charge. The following procedure applies: You drive the wheelchair / stroller to the door of the aircraft and get on. Wheelchairs / strollers are then loaded into the cargo compartment and delivered directly to the door of the aircraft upon arrival. This can of course take a moment, so that it is usually not worth trying to get out first. Exceptions confirm the rule (e.g. the stroller is in Paris CDG usually delivered to the baggage carousel). You must also note that strollers / wheelchairs have a trailer Delivery at aircraft be equipped. If you change on the way, you can either have wheelchairs and strollers checked through to your destination. If you do not want this, you have to be careful that there is no luggage tag (Baggage tag) is attached to the respective object, as it is then often not delivered when changing trains.

Checked baggage

A modern Embraer from Lufthansa Cityline.

The respective Baggage allowance are based on the starting point and destination as well as the booking class and, for short and medium-haul routes, the tariff. They also have status customers of the frequent flyer program Miles & More higher free baggage allowances and your baggage will be given preferential treatment in some cases, more on this in the table below.

In general, items of luggage that are larger than 110 x 120 x 75 cm can only be transported after prior notification. In addition, a piece of luggage (regardless of any additional charges) may weigh a maximum of 45 kg. Anything that is heavier cannot be taken with you and must be divided into several pieces of luggage or sent as air freight. At some airports, baggage may weigh a maximum of 32 kg in order to be transported. These are: Abu Dhabi, Almaty, Amsterdam, Astana, Australia, Billund, Bari, Brussels, Donetsk, Dubai, Dublin, Florence, France, Genoa, Great Britain, Johannesburg, Cape Town, Khartoum, Kuala Lumpur, Malta, Muscat, New Zealand, Rostov , Saudi Arabia, Sofia, Spain, Turin, Valencia, Verona, Cyprus.

The following information applies (unless otherwise stated) only to flights operated by Lufthansa itself. If a flight has a Lufthansa flight number but is operated by another airline (so-called Code share flights), then you have to inquire about the individual regulations with this airline.

The following free baggage allowance rules have been in effect for European and German flights since 2014, based on the tariff. With the Economy light tariff, no piece of baggage can be taken with you, despite the status, but with this tariff an additional piece of baggage up to 23kg can be booked online in advance for a fee of € 15 per route. The price difference to the Economy Classic tariff is € 20; The basic tariff also includes a seat reservation (subject to availability). With a cash upgrade that has been bookable on European and domestic flights since 2014, you cannot take a second piece of baggage with you, as the free baggage allowance relates to the ticket originally booked.

The following applies to long-haul flights:

Within these free baggage allowances, you can also take one item of baggage from the “small” category (up to 15 kg and / or 1.40 m) with you. But of course there is an exception to every rule: On flights to / from West / East and Central Africa, as well as Japan, the free baggage allowance in Economy Class is always two pieces of 23 kg each. For all trips starting in Brazil, the baggage allowance for Economy Class guests is two pieces of 32 kg each.

What happens to a Exceeding these limit values? You can of course take your luggage with you, but there are extra costs. These again depend on the destination and are therefore divided into a total of 5 zones. There are costs of € 30 per processing operation if the excess baggage fee to be paid is less than this amount. If it is higher, there are no extra processing fees. At Lufthansa, people turn a blind eye if their luggage is one or two kilograms above the maximum value, but if there are major deviations, be prepared for a high fee, especially on long-haul flights. The following values ​​for excess baggage apply.

Piece concept

This works completely opposite to the above principle Piece concept (German Piece concept). This refers to routes to North and South America, as well as from West Africa and states that you only have a certain number of pieces of luggage available to check in free of charge. However, the kilogram limits are higher, so that you can take more weight with you overall. There is also a limit to the size of the luggage. The sum of height, width, depth may not exceed 158 cm. The following table provides an overview of the maximum free baggage allowance.

If the luggage is heavier than expected, you have to pay extra fees with this concept as well. However, these are individually dependent on the route, size and weight of the bag and the booking class and are between € 40 and € 900. A detailed overview of all tariffs can be found on the Lufthansa website.

Booking options

The Lufthansa booking page is at lufthansa.com reachable. Flights of partner airlines are also offered. A beta version of the best price search for Lufthansa flights over the next eight months is also available.

Since September 15, Lufthansa has been charging an additional fee (Distribution Cost Charge DCC) of 16 euros for bookings via global reservation systems (GDS) such as Amadeus. This affects all customers who buy their flight via booking portals. Price comparisons between different sites, including those of Lufthansa, are therefore advisable.

The Lufthansa Service Center, through which bookings can also be made, can be reached around the clock at 49 69 86 799 799.

In Austria you can call Deutsche Lufthansa Reservations and Information on 43 810 1025 8080 (0.073 € / min throughout Austria) from 6 a.m., on weekends from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. For Switzerland, the number is 0900 900 922 (German; 0.15 CHF / min) or 0900 900 933 (French; 0.15 CHF / min), available from 8:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. or in the summer months until 11:00 p.m. Clock.

The airline is only connected to the travel agency chain Lufthansa City Center through naming rights. You can also go to any other travel agency you trust and book a flight there.

Check in

Lufthansa offers several types of check-in. From the beginning, the airline tried to offer new, electronic forms of tickets and check-ins. Here, too, a distinction is made between classes. At the airport, the areas for economy customers are highlighted in green, for business class guests in dark blue and for first class customers in red. The following options are currently available:

• traditional at the counter: In the departure hall of the airport there are several counters where you can hand in your luggage to an employee and receive a boarding pass after presenting your booking confirmation or ticket and ID. This form of check-in is now gradually being phased out for economy class passengers. For business and first class travelers, however, it is always available until further notice.
• Check-in machine: You can check in at a machine and then choose a seat by showing your passport, registering your credit card or entering your name and booking code. You get that Passenger receipt (i.e. the receipt) and the corresponding boarding passes. Then you go to a baggage drop-off counter, where you hand over your baggage to an employee by showing your boarding pass. This procedure is intended to save staff and speed up the check-in process.
• Check-in machine with bag drop: At a few airports there are machines that are connected to a baggage conveyor belt and where you can hand over your baggage yourself. This usually saves time, as you don't have to queue at the bag drop counters. The procedure is analogous to the "automatic machine procedure", only here you have to attach the baggage tag to the suitcase yourself.
• Online check-in: You can check in on the Internet from 23 hours before departure. This is very easy to do on the Lufthansa website. You can then either print out your boarding pass at home or have a barcode sent to your mobile phone as an email or MMS. You have to show this at the airport security checkpoint and when boarding, so you are not allowed to delete it. For owners of smartphones, there is now a dedicated “Lufthansa app” with which you can call up the flight plan and also check in.

As soon as you have booked a trip, you can see the booking status on the Internet. Here you can also choose a seat (the earlier, the more seats are freely selectable, only available on long-haul flights) and on flights where hot food is served, you can request a special dish online. The so-called Special meals come in many different variants, e.g. B. vegetarian, kosher or gluten-free menus.

Passengers with disabilities

barrier-free For Lufthansa, as for all airlines in the EU, Regulation No. 1107/2006 applies, which regulates the rights of disabled passengers. The airline should be informed about the special needs of the passenger one week, but no later than 48 hours before the flight, this can be done via the telephone number 49 (0) 800 - 83 84 267. The topic should also be addressed again at the check-in counter (e.g. pacemaker). On-board wheelchairs are usually available for long-haul flights, otherwise they should be ordered in good time. The toilets are still a problem: in most machines their size is anything but handicapped accessible, but that applies worldwide. Sometimes, even with the best will in the world, there is only an indwelling catheter. To avoid this, you should look for possible alternatives when booking.

Anyone who has an intolerance to certain foods or who rejects certain foods for religious reasons can call 49 (0)69 - 86 799 799 order a special meal, there are no additional costs.

Lounges

Lufthansa has set up its own lounges at German airports and many airports abroad, or customers can use the lounges of Lufthansa partners. These offer comfortable seating and, depending on the equipment, other amenities. Business and First Class passengers can each use special lounges, as can status customers of the frequent flyer program Miles & More and the Star Alliance partner companies (see below) can use these rooms depending on their status. Lufthansa is the only airline in the world to own am airport Frankfurt its own first class terminal where 1st class passengers can find everything they need (including the option to take a bath). Shortly before departure, they are then driven to the plane in a car. This personal pick-up service is also available at other airports.

Frequent flyer program

The Lufthansa bonus program is called Miles & More (German Miles and more). As a passenger, you collect so-called award miles, which you can redeem for material assets, and status miles, which give you better service or other advantages at the airports and on board. Anyone can sign up for free on the program's website at www.miles-and-more.com or register using a registration form in the Lufthansa on-board magazine. You can now use the Star Alliance Earn miles and there are many other partners with whom this is possible, such as rental car companies, hotels, insurance companies and newspaper subscriptions. There is also a Miles & More credit card with which you automatically collect one award mile for every euro you spend.

Award miles you collect on every flight or when you shop at one of the partners. These can then be exchanged for prizes in kind. These include, for example, free flights or upgrades to a better booking class (e.g. from Economy to Business), but also discounts with partners. Lufthansa operates its own chain of stores with branches at several airports, called World Shop. Analog has Swiss her first in June 2010 Swiss Shop opened at Zurich Airport. Here you can pay for all or some of the items with miles. You can also pay for goods sold on board with miles.

Status miles can only be collected on flights with Lufthansa and some partner airlines. The number of miles earned depends on the booking class and length of the flight route. The higher the class and the longer the route, the more miles you collect. The number of miles earned in a calendar year determines the customer's "status". From 35,000 status miles you are Frequent traveler, ab 100.000 (130.000 Meilen für Kunden mit Wohnsitz in Deutschland) Senator und ab 600.000 Meilen erhält man den Status eines HON Circle Member. Je nach Status hat man verschiedene Vorteile, wie z.B. höhere Freigepäckmengen, Zugang zu den jeweiligen Lounges oder Vorrang beim Check-In.

security

Lufthansa genießt einen sehr guten Ruf und gilt als eine der sichersten Fluggesellschaften weltweit. Die Ausbildung der Piloten für die Kern-Lufthansa (also ohne Regionalflotte) findet an der Verkehrsfliegerschule in Bremen statt und LH ist eine der wenigen Fluggesellschaften weltweit, die ihre eigenen Piloten von Anfang an selbst schult. Die Flugzeuge werden vom eigenen Wartungsbetrieb, der Lufthansa Technik überprüft. Nichtsdestotrotz kommt es bei einem Unternehmen dieser Größe über die Jahrzehnte auch zu Zwischenfällen. In den 70er und 80er Jahren gab es zahlreiche Flugzeugentführungen, die sich vor allem gegen die damalige Staatsmacht Deutschland richteten. Die bekannteste Tragödie ist sicher die Entführung der Boeing 737 "Landshut", die mit der Stürmung des Flugzeuges in Mogadischu endete. Vor allem in der Anfangszeit der Luftfahrtgesellschaft stürzten insgesamt sieben Passagierflugzeuge ab, wobei der schwerwiegendste Absturz 1974 passierte, als eine Boeing 747-100 (das erste Modell der überaus erfolgreichen Baureihe) bei Nairobi verunglückte und 59 Menschen starben. Der letzte Unfall mit Todesfolge geschah 1993 in Warschau, als ein Airbus A320 nicht rechtzeitig zum Stehen kam und ein Passagier, sowie ein Ausbildungskapitän ums Leben kamen.

Web links

• www.lufthansa.com
• www.lufthansaholidays.com

Deutsche Fluggesellschaften

Condor - Eurowings - Lufthansa - Lufthansa Cityline - TUIfly

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