Lufthansa also offers fewer domestic flights for cost reasons. The cooperation with Deutsche Bahn has also been expanded, said CEO Carsten Spohr of the German Press Agency. “Another reason is the high fees that our guests have to pay both at the departure and destination airports in Germany.” Lufthansa has therefore changed course: “That’s why we are using our aircraft more and more efficiently and profitably on other European routes.”
According to the statistics of the airport association ADV, domestic German air traffic is lagging behind when it comes to the recovery after the corona shock. In September, the number of registered passengers on domestic flights was only 1.9 million. That was only 45.3 percent of the level in September of the pre-crisis year 2019. On European flights, on the other hand, four out of five passengers (80.2 percent) had already returned. At the same time, according to the Federal Statistical Office, domestic tickets were around 25 percent more expensive in August than three years earlier.
The connections within Germany are mainly offered by Lufthansa and its subsidiary Eurowings. Foreign competitors such as Easyjet and Ryanair have withdrawn. Domestic flights are also criticized by environmental and climate protectionists. Lufthansa is cooperating with Deutsche Bahn to bring more passengers to their hubs for long-distance flights by rail.
