Germany’s largest airline, Lufthansa, is launching a new carrier, City Airlines, which will start operating medium-haul flights from Munich and Frankfurt in the summer of 2024.
As Avianews reports, the subsidiary air carrier will deliver passengers to key airports, who will then transfer to long-haul Lufthansa flights.
It is noted that the appearance of City Airlines is probably related to the desire of the German airline to reduce personnel costs, although Lufthansa does not indicate this. In recent years, the airline’s stability has been shaken by repeated strikes by crews demanding higher wages.
“At the same time, passengers will practically not notice the difference between Lufthansa and City Airlines. The planes of both airlines will have similar liveries, the crew will have similar uniforms, passengers will book tickets on the Lufthansa website and receive the same service,” the message says.
The fleet of City Airlines is to be supplemented with Airbus A319 aircraft used by Lufthansa. The parent airline can start transferring such airliners to the City Airlines fleet and recruit pilots and flight attendants with lower salaries for the new daughter.