Lufthansa's strategy for Italy is still going on
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Lufthansa Italia, © German Lufthansa AG
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MILAN - Italy remains on Lufthansa, a year after the commencement of operations by subsidiary Lufthansa Italia (LHI) is a difficult market. The Group is built from the Milan-Malpensa (MXP) now has not been satisfactorily settle. From 16 February, there Lufthansa Italia insufficiently busy, the connection between Malpensa and Rome Fiumicino on. Overall, the airline flights to 2010, but its increase.
The withdrawal of a restructuring negotiations are stuck in Alitalia from Milan represented a northern Italian white spot in European aviation. With the founding of Lufthansa Italia this supply gap should be closed in an economically strong region.
The relaunch of Alitalia, Lufthansa made it difficult as a privatized company in the sequence but the development of the Italian domestic market.
The recent decision to discontinue the route to Rome-Fiumicino illustrates a fundamental problem: Lufthansa Italia lack of access to the favorite of business travelers Town Milan-Linate Airport. Alitalia controls about 80 percent of the Linate airport slots. At Malpensa hub Budget Air Italy Air also exerts additional pressure on prices on Lufthansa Italia.
Lufthansa on Friday reaffirmed its interest in the development of the Linate airport traffic. With the corresponding slots Lufthansa Italia would immediately fly over the city airport, said company spokeswoman Amelie Schwierholz compared aero.de. Lufthansa had tried in vain several times last year to buy slots at Linate.
The group has no separate traffic figures for Lufthansa Italia. The utilization of the machines will be consolidated in the passage. On request, our editors gave the group the average occupancy of flights by Lufthansa Italia with 70 percent. In the Europe traffic up to 80 percent of the machines were busy.
"Regarding the cost is, Lufthansa Italia on a good path," said the spokeswoman. "The productivity of the aircraft is already at a good level, here we are still working on further improvements."
New routes and increased frequencies
With the start of the summer timetable, Lufthansa Italia will offer four new routes from Milan MXP: Stockholm and Warsaw as well as Palermo and Olbia. Existing connections to Naples, Budapest and Barcelona will be increased so that LHI will offer 19 flights a week to Naples and Barcelona as well as 12 weekly flights to Budapest.
Overall, Lufthansa Italia in Milan will offer 176 weekly flights to 13 destinations in Italy and throughout Europe. (Barcelona, Bucharest, Budapest, Madrid, Lisbon, London Heathrow, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Stockholm, Warsaw, Bari, Naples, Olbia, Palermo).
The fleet will grow accordingly. "Lufthansa Italia will get to operate the new routes and frequencies additional aircraft," added Schwierholz. "This will be supplied on a needs basis from the Lufthansa Group."
Bereederung LHI dispute continues
The objective of Lufthansa decoupling of LHI from the collective group, meanwhile, continue to take the bitter opposition of the unions. "In LH Italia not own pilots and flight attendants are employed, the ongoing operations is integrated into the Lufthansa flight operations and the LHI aircraft are equipped and staffed by Lufthansa AG, said Schwierholz.
Whether Lufthansa can prevail at the subsidiary in 2010 a separate employment framework is uncertain and the outcome will depend on the ongoing collective bargaining with the cockpit. The battle lines are now hardened. In January Cockpit called its members a ballot to the polls. 4500 Lufthansa and German Wings pilots are up to 17 February its vote on a labor issue.
© aero.de | Figure: German Lufthansa AG | 29.01.2010 11:40