Lufthansa axes 20,000 ‘unprofitable’ flights to save jet fuel
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Lufthansa is ending 20,000 short-haul routes across its network through October to achieve “jet fuel savings of more than 40,000 metric tons,” the airline announced.
Jet fuel costs have “doubled since the outbreak of the Iran conflict,” Lufthansa said.
The move follows last week’s decision to retire the entire 27-aircraft fleet of its subsidiary CityLine ahead of schedule amid surging fuel costs and tightening supply.
The airline said the first 120 flights were canceled on Monday. “The medium-term route planning for the coming months is being revised considering the capacity reduction and will be published in late April or early May,” Lufthansa said, adding that affected passengers have been notified.
The 20,000 cancellations, which include flights previously operated by CityLine, will impact hubs in Frankfurt, Munich, Zurich, Vienna, Brussels and Rome and “reduce the number of unprofitable short-haul flights.”
The airline said these “flight schedule optimizations” will continue.
Despite the announcement, the carrier said the “group’s jet fuel supply [is] secured for the coming weeks.”
Other airlines have announced similar measures. SAS Scandinavian Airlines canceled about a thousand flights due to high fuel costs, while Air France-KLM has introduced a €100 surcharge on long-haul tickets.
The European Commission plans to announce its AccelerateEU plan on Wednesday to address the energy crunch caused by the war in the Middle East.
