Lufthansa supports European elections through dedicated aircraft

On 13 May, Lufthansa brought four A320’s to Brussels Airport, with each of the group members sporting a ‘Yes to Europe’ livery. Through the visual demonstration of the aircraft, the aviation concern wanted to highlight the importance of the upcoming European elections which take place from 06-09JUN24. The event was an appeal to Europeans not to vote for right-wing extremist and post-fascist parties. They wanted to return to an EU of nation states and abolish the euro. This would jeopardize economic growth, Europe’s position in the world and cost millions of jobs.

The Lufthansa Group says “Yes to Europe” – image: CFG/ms

In his introductory remarks, Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr reminded of the prosperity the European Union has brought to post-war Europe and continues doing so. Only this economic and political bloc made it possible to establish a transnational aviation company like the Lufthansa Group. As proof, four A320 aircraft of member airlines stood behind him on the apron of BRU airport: Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Eurowings and Lufthansa.

Maintaining, not jeopardizing prosperity
Today, the bloc is a respected trade partner across the world and extremely well connected. Within Europe and beyond the limits of the continent, the Lufthansa group member airlines, including Swiss, Discover Airlines, and Air Dolomiti provide the connectivity needed by business travelers, the cargo industry and leisure travelers alike. This is a contribution to the preservation of prosperity in Europe, the executive stated.

However, after 75 years of a largely positive development that has enabled millions of people to enjoy a safe everyday life, these favorable conditions are not to be taken for granted anymore, Mr. Spohr warned. “War is raging again at our doorstep and democracy as we know it may be under threat.Soon millions of citizens will have the opportunity to shape the future of the European Union for the next electoral period of 5 years. Now more than ever, it is up to all of us to use our voting rights in the European elections to stand up for democracy and a united and free continent. This is the prerequisite for a strong continent and a strong economy,” he concluded.

Unity in diversity
President of the European Parliament Roberta Mitsola stressed the importance of Europe’s legislative body for creating the right prerequisites for the functioning of the Union. Understandably, she too called for active participation in the elections to come. “Our work is far from finished,” she said.

As Belgium is currently holding the presidency of the Council of the European Union, the country’s PM Alexander De Croo was the third to address the guests. He said that the EU has really transformed the life of its citizens in a positive direction. “When the project was conceived there were fears that it would turn Europe into another kind of United States, erasing every form of national identity. Now we see that it has strengthened these national identities, allowing them to interact.”

Mr. De Croo admitted that the democratic process in the bloc tends to be slow. “There are countries where the leader controls 98% of the votes and decision-making may be faster,” he said. But this happens at the expense of freedom and democratic rights for the people living in states under authoritarian rule.

The joint hub concept
On the occasion of the LH Group’s fleet presentation, the trade magazine AeroTelegraph published an interview with Dorothea von Boxberg, CEO Brussels Airlines. She spoke of plans to turn Brussels Airport into a joint hub of the Lufthansa Group with its joint venture partners United Airlines and Air Canada for facilitating passenger and cargo flows between North America and Africa. These flows are growing very strongly, which is why fast and efficient transfers of people and goods via high performing air hubs are essential. This joint project has already been discussed with the alliance partners, she confirmed. Part of the concept is also that Brussels Airlines will strengthen its African network by offering new routes, for instance to Nairobi, and replace jaw flights with nonstop traffic to some African destinations.

LH Cargo expands its network
On 14MAY24, just one day after the event in Brussels, Lufthansa Cargo announced the addition of Monterrey to its route network. The weekly flights operated with a Boeing Triple Seven freighter aircraft are scheduled to commence on 03JUN24 and take from Frankfurt to Mexico City (NLU), then onwards to Monterrey International Airport (MTY), and back to Frankfurt. The services should be particularly interesting for automotive suppliers, electronics providers, and customers transporting medical products. Eastbound, many perishables are expected alongside industrial goods traveling from Mexico to the EU. “Connecting the business and industrial city of Monterrey with the European market as the first European cargo airline underscores our strategic growth into new markets and underlines our purpose of Enabling Global Business,” explains Ashwin Bhat, CEO of Lufthansa Cargo. With this new addition, Lufthansa Cargo will serve North America with up to 33 freighter frequencies weekly and South America with up to 4 frequencies weekly in addition to the large number of passenger flights offering the cargo industry abundant lower deck transport capacity.

Furthermore, Lufthansa Cargo announced the expansion of its transatlantic belly network this summer by adding Minneapolis and Raleigh-Durham to its route map. Some of the Shanghai to Frankfurt flights operated by a B777F will stop over in Dubai in future.

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