Lufthansa and cabin crew union reach a pay deal to end string of German aviation disputes
Lufthansa and a union representing cabin crew have reached a pay deal, concluding the last of several major disputes that have led to recent strikes at Germanyโs biggest airline and in the countryโs wider aviation sector.
Signs of hope in Germany, France but virus strains hospitals
Lufthansa starts the first test runs for comprehensive Covid-19 antigen rapid tests on selected routes between Munich and Hamburg. But authorities said Thursday that hospitals are crowded and are likely to face further strain in the coming weeks. But the number of people infected per 100,000 has been dropping for 10 days, and the number of virus patients is hospitals is expected to peak early next week, French officials reported. As of Wednesday, there were at least 3,127 COVID-19 patients in intensive care in Germany. Passengers weren't charged for the test but were told to arrive an hour earlier to allow time for the results.
Lufthansa to try out pre-flight corona tests on routes to US
FRANKFURT โ German airline Lufthansa says it will test the practice of offering on-the-spot coronavirus tests before boarding intercontinental flights in an attempt to find a way to get long-haul passengers flying again. The tests on some routes to the U.S. are to begin in October and the practice will depend on government approval. The company said the routes to the U.S. had not been decided yet. The tests would be a way around the different quarantine requirements, such as Germanyโs rule that arrivals from areas designated as high-risk must quarantine for 14 days. Those rules, while they can help contain the spread of the virus, are a major deterrent to air travel, industry representatives say.
Lufthansa pulls more big jets, issues gloomy outlook
German airline Lufthansa, already bailed out by the government, says it will have to make more staff cuts and mothball more jumbo jets than originally planned because the outlook for air travel is worse than the company first predicted. The company said Monday it would have to drop more than the already announced 22,000 full-time positions, without saying how many more. The airline will also pull its remaining eight Airbus A380 jets out of service and put them in long-term storage, along with 10 four-engine A340-600 aircraft. It said it was hoping to reduce cash burn to 400 million euros ($470 million) a month this winter from 500 million euros a month presently. Lufthansa has secured a 9 billion euro ($10.6 billion) bailout from the German government.
Lufhansa see revenues drop 80%, no full recovery until 2024
Especially for long-haul routes there will be no quick recovery, CEO Carsten Spohr said in a statement accompanying the quarterly earnings statement. Lufthansa said it carried 96% fewer passengers during the April-June quarter and experienced an 80% drop in revenue, to 1.9 billion euros from 9.6 billion euros in the same quarter a year earlier. The cargo division made a profit of 299 million euros, up from 9 million a year ago. Lufthansa has started flying short-haul vacation flights but in July its offerings reached only around 20% of last year's level. It said short and medium haul capacity would increase to 40% in the third quarter and long-haul capacity to 20%.
Housing spark and clothes shopping is back, at least online
But some of the push toward online shopping may become permanent. Online sales have soared nearly 470%. CANNED FOODS OUT, CLOTHING IN: It appears that pandemic-driven online shopping is shifting from the pantry to the closet as millions prepare to emerge from lockdown. The number of people that purchased groceries online dropped from 31% last week to 29% this week, according to a Coresight Research survey. At the same time, Coresight said the focus for those shopping online has shifted to clothing.
Lufthansa warns 22,000 jobs at risk despite bailout
All rights reserved)BERLIN German airline Lufthansa says 22,000 full-time jobs may need to be cut worldwide due to the drop in demand for flights caused by the coronavirus pandemic. That's more than twice the number of jobs that the airline, which says it has over 135,000 employees, previously said might need to be axed. Lufthansa, which also owns Swiss, Austrian Airlines and Brussels Airlines, said it expects to have about 100 planes fewer in operation after the pandemic. Lufthansa has agreed to a 9 billion-euro ($10 billion) bailout plan that would give a government stabilization fund a 20% stake in the airline. Existing shareholders need to approve the bailout at an extraordinary meeting on June 25.