Lufthansa intends to add ten new European destinations in the summer to reach 5,200 weekly frequencies, up to 87% of the pre-pandemic level, the German air carrier said in a press release Wednesday.
Starting April 23, Lufthansa will fly from Frankfurt to Belfast, Northern Ireland, four times a week. Next, the airline will expand its presence in London with two daily flights to Gatwick airport. In addition, travellers headed to the Spanish Atlantic coast will benefit from the new offering to Asturias airport. Lufthansa will fly to the province capital Oviedo three times a week. Lufthansa said that Oviedo is a preferred starting point for tourist trips to the northern part of Spain.
The airline also intends to cement its position in Eastern Europe with up to two daily flights to Skopje, North Macedonia. According to the release, the brand-new destination targets business and leisure travellers.
Starting April 29, Lufthansa will add the French coastal town Biarritz to its summer schedule from Frankfurt. It will fly to the seaside resort every Saturday.
From April 25, Lufthansa will start flights from Munich to Asturias in the north of Spain and Bordeaux in France three times a week. The company will also bring back the daily connection to the south-eastern Polish town of Rzeszów.
Also, from May 2, Lufthansa will add three weekly flights from Munich to Osaka, Japan. In addition, it will also launch flights to Mexico City three times a week. Lufthansa offers more than 205 routes worldwide, almost as many as before the pandemic.
The German flagship airline also intends to simplify its loyalty program and establish “a more transparent earning system” for status upgrades, its parent company Lufthansa Group said in a separate release Wednesday. The updated program will launch in January 2024, it said.
Going forward, customers will be offered a clearer, more transparent earning system for achieving and retaining Frequent Traveller, Senator, and HON Circle status. In a nutshell, Lufthansa intends to replace miles with a more straightforward points system. In addition, the airline will offer greater loyalty rewards to the Lufthansa Group airlines. Furthermore, the company will introduce a new Frequent Traveller Lifetime status to its most loyal passengers next to the already existing Senator Lifetime status, it said.
Travellers will still earn points through flights with the airline’s Star Alliance partners. However, from 2024, passengers willing to achieve Frequent Traveller and Senator status will have to fly with some of Lufthansa’s subsidiaries, including Austrian Airlines, Eurowings, SWISS, Brussels Airlines, and more.
The number of points will depend on the travel class and whether the journey is continental or overseas. For example, an economy flight from Munich to Tokyo would earn more points than a business class journey from Munich to Amsterdam.
HON Circle members will still benefit exclusively on their business and first-class flights operated by Lufthansa and its codeshare partners. The period for earning points for any flyer status will be one calendar year.
As demand returns, the air carrier is set to reach its 2019 passenger levels by the end of 2023.
