Lufthansa operates strongest Middle East schedule ever

This summer Lufthansa offers more flights than ever from the Middle East to Europe, the Americas and rest of the world via its hubs in Frankfurt and Munich. In 2012, more than 400,000 passengers chose Lufthansa for flights between Dubai, Abu Dhabi and over 200 destinations worldwide and vice versa. For the whole Middle East the total number was above 1,000,000 passengers. This figure reflects an increase of more than 10 per cent compared to 2011 and a trust bestowed on the airline specifically for its attractive fares on the premium services and easy connections.

“There is so much more potential in the UAE for Lufthansa. Our flights to and from Frankfurt and Munich are both well received by passengers and they know that Lufthansa offers more connections to Europe, North America and beyond than any other carrier. We are extremely proud on this positive performance in times of tough economic situation surrounding the aviation sector”, said Carsten Schaeffer, Vice President Sales and Services Southeast Europe, Middle East and Africa at the Arabian Travel Market (ATM). “This summer we will increase the capacity from and to Dubai by roughly 20% due to larger airplanes on the route.”

Also the rest of Lufthansa’s Middle East network will grow substantially. With more than 140 weekly flights from 14 destinations it is the largest program ever performed. Especially Saudi Arabia will see more flights on the Jeddah-Riyadh-Munich route. The 5 weekly flights to Munich are added on the 7 weekly flights each from Riyadh and Jeddah to Frankfurt and the four weekly flights from Dammam to Frankfurt. Already in 1960 Lufthansa started flights to the GCC with a flight Dhahran on a four-(piston) engine Lockheed Super Constellation.

“We are looking back on more than 50 years of flying to the Middle East and right after the start of Lufthansa in 1955 this region became very important for being connected to Europe and America – building on this heritage is an important pillar of our services here. We will see another important milestone this year with celebrating 50 years of flying to Kuwait, which is one of our best performing routes, especially in premium class travel”, Carsten Schaeffer added.

Lufthansa’s First Class products received the 5-star award from Skytrax. On board, the Skytrax rating system singled out the superb comfort of the First Class cabin with ergonomically contoured seats, which convert into a fully flat, two-metre long bed. Lufthansa’s First Class cabin staff was also awarded for their onboard service quality. On ground, the First Class Terminal in Frankfurt was praised for its exclusive personal assistant service and the unbeatable food and spa selection.

“In addition to the even better network opportunities from the Middle East, Lufthansa committed itself to invest EUR 1million every day (excluding the new airplane orders) for the next 1,000 days in better ground and onboard services. New seats in all classes, individual inflight entertainment in Economy Class, innovative First Class and Business Class as well as brand new lounges, will help us define new industry standards,” added Schaeffer. “Globally, our Group is on a fleet expansion and on order are another 236 airplanes, valued at more than 22 billion Euros at list prices and for delivery until 2025”.

For traveling to North America, Middle Eastern jetsetters arrive in style via the newest addition to Lufthansa’s fleet, the “Queen of the Skies” Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental fitted with the highly-stylish and modern First Class and the new Business Class, both providing more space and comfort. Arriving in Frankfurt, passengers find easy connections to the airline’s choice of flights to 218 destinations in 82 countries; they will get to enjoy the state-of-the-art, four-level new A Pier at Terminal 1 in Frankfurt airport providing passengers with a chance to relax in a more comfortable surrounding prior to boarding their flights. As well as 23 new gates with seamless connection to the corresponding levels of the existing Terminal 1 building, passengers also find more retail outlets and places to dine, and can relax in any of the five new Lufthansa lounges including Senator, Business and First Class lounges. Most of Lufthansa’s Airbus A380 and Boeing 747-8 will be boarded there.