Lufthansa expands and modernises long-range fleet

09.12.2006 [17:03] Supervisory Board approves orders for 27 new aircraft

At its recent meeting, the Lufthansa Supervisory Board approved orders for a total of 27 new aircraft. Twenty of those orders are for new long-range Boeing 747-8 jets, with deliveries scheduled to begin in 2010. A further seven Airbus A340-600 long-haul aircraft will be joining the fleet from 2008. Lufthansa has also taken out options on a further twenty of the B747-8 type. With the order placements, Lufthansa is underpinning its planned growth in intercontinental traffic and, simultaneously, replacing some of the existing aircraft in the fleet.

“With aircraft types in the B747 series from Boeing, on the one hand, and others from the A330/A340/A380 family from Airbus, on the other, Lufthansa is ideally equipped to strengthen and expand its leading position in intercontinental traffic,“ said Wolfgang Mayrhuber, Chairman of the Executive Board of Deutsche Lufthansa AG. The orders reflect Lufthansa’s growth and profitability targets. “By modernising the fleet, the new aircraft will bring further gains in efficiency as well as reduce fuel and operating costs. Both aircraft types are sustainable investments in ecological efficiency and add greater weight to Lufthansa’s active commitment to environmental protection,“ said Mayrhuber. And he emphasised: “Today’s decision on the fleet underscores Lufthansa’s clear commitment to customer orientation and profitable growth as well as the deep sense of responsibility it brings to bear on environmental issues and sustainability. With these new aircraft we will reduce emissions lastingly by 20 per cent compared with earlier models.“

Only profitable and sound companies are today in a position to invest in modern, fuel-saving, quiet and thereby environmentally friendly and economical long-haul aircraft for their customers. “Lufthansa is modernising, Lufthansa is growing and Lufthansa investing in further progress and a successful future,“ Wolfgang Mayrhuber emphasised. A modern and well-structured fleet forms the backbone of a service and market-driven airline.

Wolfgang Mayrhuber continued: “With the orders for the highly modern B747-8, Lufthansa is setting standards. The Boeing B747-8 is more than just a derivative of the successful Boeing B747 series.“ The airline will be the world’s first carrier to operate services with the new wide-body – the longest passenger jet in the world. In the Lufthansa configuration, the B747-8 will be capable of carrying around 400 passengers. “The B747-8 underlines our strategy of graded market-specific services and capacity expansion. It fits perfectly in our intercontinental fleet structure and slots neatly capacity-wise between the A380 with around 550 seats and the A340-600 with around 300 seats.“

Integration of this plane in the fleet highlights Lufthansa’s role as an innovation driver. “Lufthansa is an important partner for Boeing. The airline will play a critical role in helping us shape the future of the 747," said Scott Carson, President and Chief Executive Officer, Boeing Commercial Airplanes. "We are thrilled Lufthansa has chosen the 747-8 Intercontinental to be an integral part of their young and environmentally friendly fleet."

Lufthansa is equipping the 20 B747-8s with new General Electric GEnx-2B67 powerplants. "The GEnx engines incorporate advanced, proven technologies from our highly successful GE90 engines as well as new innovation from GE's ongoing research and development programs," said Tom Brisken, General Manager of the GEnx program. "These advancements provide customers with improved fuel efficiency and reductions in emissions and noise and engine weight, and a lower cost of ownership." The new B747-8 will burn an average of around 3.5 litres to fly one passenger 100 kilometres, setting new standards in fuel efficiency.

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