Lufthansa : LH : DLH

In my last [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] from Caracas to Frankfurt i spend almost two hours talking to a LH FA, I have met him several times before and while I can't say we are friends we have since many times now spend some time talking about several topics. i asked him about LH fleet and he said that they were getting ready to order a new fleet of new generation [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien].

This is what he mentioned to me:

85 Aircraft in total:
20 Airbus A351
35 Airbus A359
30 Boeing 789

Rumours rumours... Many many rumours and none of them are credible at that time.

The big order for LH and new airplanes is due September 2012. So we have to be patient.

Everything is still possible. LH is evaluating 350 or 787. And 320NEO or 737MAX or EMB... So all is possible.

UK-based investors are near to an agreement to acquire UK carrier BMI Regional, a division of the mainline airline owned by Lufthansa Group.

If a deal is closed it would mark the first move in the break-up of BMI which has burdened Lufthansa since it took over the loss-making operation in 2009.

BMI Regional operates a fleet of Embraer jets and is based in the Scottish city of Aberdeen.

The mainline carrier said it "envisaged" that a transaction document for the sale "will be signed shortly" with a view to completing the divestment by the end of the year.

It said the sale would be in the form of shares of BMI Regional, the airline's fleet and route network, and the continued employment of personnel.

While the proposed buyer has not been identified, BMI said it was an investor group "previously associated with the regional business" and that discussions were "advanced".

BMI Regional would continue to fly, for a period, under its current brand and IATA designator code and the current winter 2011-12 schedule "will continue as planned" with "no major network changes" expected for summer 2012.

"The intended sale of BMI Regional is part of the strategic review of BMI," said BMI chief Wolfgang Prock-Schauer.

"It is our goal to find sustainable solutions for all parts of the BMI business and we, as well as the shareholder, continue to assess options."

No financial details have been disclosed. BMI said the potential investor is "keen to consult with staff" and that this would begin soon, in order to complete the transaction as soon as possible.

"The new owner plans to continue the airline as an independent entity based in Aberdeen and to further develop the regional network in both the UK and Europe," it added.

"Employment prospects will be enhanced through a planned growth strategy."

The US House of Representatives has resumed its attack on the EU's emissions trading scheme (ETS) after it passed a bill prohibiting US carriers from taking part in the programme.

The European Union ­Emissions Trading Scheme Prohibition Act of 2011 was passed "overwhelmingly" by voice vote, said the House committee on transportation and infrastructure. If passed by the Senate and signed into law by President Barack Obama, the bill would prohibit US airlines from taking part in the scheme, which imposes emissions taxes on carriers flying into and out of the EU.

The bill also instructs US ­officials to take any action necessary to ensure that US carriers are not penalised by any unilaterally-imposed EU scheme.

"Only through international ­dialogue will we reach consensus on how to deal with a global challenge, but I am confident that - if our European friends will act in good faith - we will more than rise to the occasion," said Congressman Nick Rahall, one of the representatives who introduced the bill. "For the meanwhile, this bill will protect US airlines and all Americans who rely on them for travel and employment from the unjust effects of the EU's plan."

Two airlines have added their voices to chorus of disapproval surrounding the ETS. Speaking at a parliamentary reception in London, Phee Teik Yeoh, Singapore Airlines' UK general manager, said the best way of tackling emissions from aviation was a scheme that incentivised carriers to "purchase the best aircraft and develop greener solutions and practices", citing its operation of the Airbus A380 as an example.

"We do not believe that the EU's emissions trading scheme is the best way to incentivise improvements," he added. "It is impractical for some economic zones to have an emissions trading scheme for aviation and others not to." Dr Christoph Franz, chairman of Lufthansa Group, also criticised the ETS. Speaking at a press conference unveiling the German carrier's nine-month results, he called for its implementation on 1 January 2012 to be suspended, if agreements with other countries cannot be reached by the end of the year. "European airlines must not become victims of this kind of struggle," he added.

Both carriers called for a global scheme to be hammered out through International Civil Aviation Organization.

Cathay Pacific took delivery of its first Boeing 747-8 Freighter aircraft on 31 October.

"We took delivery of our first [Boeing] 747-8F on 31 October Seattle time and the aircraft is on its way to Hong Kong now," said a Cathay Pacific official.

The carrier, which has 10 747-8Fs on order, is the second customer to take delivery of the type after Cargolux.

Cathay Pacific also has eight Boeing 777-200 Freighters on order.

Lufthansa is set to enter exclusive talks to sell loss-making carrier bmi by the end of the month, with arch rival IAG, the owner of British Airways and Iberia, seen as the front-runner, sources said on Tuesday.

"The price won't be substantial, it's mainly about cleaning Lufthansa's balance sheet and getting rid of the debt," one source close to the sales process said.

Bmi has been a millstone around Lufthansa's neck and by putting it up for sale, the company has admitted efforts have stalled to turn around the unit, which reported losses of EUR€154 million (USD$214.8 million) for the first nine months of 2011.

Lufthansa finance chief Stephan Gemkow said at the group's third-quarter results last week talks were going on with several interested parties and that a binding deal could be reached this year.

The source added there were a handful of bidders, including IAG and Virgin Atlantic.

While Lufthansa is seeking to sell bmi as a whole, another source close to the deal said the most likely outcome would be Lufthansa selling bmi's coveted slots at Heathrow, Europe's largest airport, to IAG.

IAG would then pass on some of those slots to Virgin to relieve competition concerns.

"Lufthansa will likely sell bmi's slots for about GBP£300 million max and its stake in (air traffic manager) NATS and fetch about GBP£400 million in total, so just enough to recover from the losses accumulated since the bmi acquisition," the person said.

With the Heathrow slots sold, smaller players such as Flybe or Eastern could then look to pick up bmi regional.

While some have queried whether Lufthansa would sell bmi to arch rival British Airways, thus strengthening the latter's position at London's Heathrow, one of the sources close to the deal said Lufthansa's desire to be rid of bmi would come first.

"Lufthansa is losing patience and could finally surrender to selling to IAG. They really tried hard to avoid giving them such a strong presence at Heathrow."

One airline industry specialist, who did not want to be named, said Lufthansa would also be keen to avoid bmi falling into the clutches of Gulf airline Etihad, which sources say is teaming up with Virgin for a bid.

"Lufthansa is doing everything in its power to keep the fast growing Gulf airlines at bay - why should they allow a main competitor to gain a foothold on Europe's busiest airport in Heathrow," he said.

(Reuters)

Lufthansa is reportedly finalising the sale of British Midland International (BMI) to British Airways parent International Airlines Group (IAG).

Quoting unnamed sources close to the negotiations, a number of media reported today that the German carrier has finally decided to sell its UK subsidiary to the Anglo-Spanish airline consortium.

Lufthansa had negotiated with a number of bidders over the past weeks, including Virgin Atlantic Airways.

A potential deal with IAG could be announced as early as tomorrow when the group presents its financial results for the first nine months of 2011.

With the acquisition, IAG would command 60-70% of the slots at London Heathrow. With around 8.5% of slots, BMI is the second largest slot holder at the hub after BA.

Given that Heathrow's capacity has been virtually exhausted, Virgin said it is "very concerned about the competition ramifications of an IAG purchase of BMI".

Lufthansa and BA declined to comment on the status of their negotiations.

After International Airlines Group (IAG) announced today that it had agreed in principle with Lufthansa to take over British Midland International (BMI), there is confusion as Virgin Atlantic Airways appears to be still making a rival bid for the UK carrier.

Virgin said in statement today that "we are working with Lufthansa on the next stage of the purchase".

Virgin added that "we remain committed to the acquisition of BMI".

IAG said earlier today that it expected to ink a binding purchase agreement with Lufthansa "in the coming weeks" and that the transaction would be completed "in the first quarter 2012".

Given London Heathrow's exhausted capacity and dependency on the existing slots, Virgin argues that a BMI takeover through British Airways parent IAG would have an adverse effect on competition at the UK hub.

"British Airways' hold over Heathrow is already too dominant and we are very concerned - as the competition authorities should also be - that BA's purchase of BMI would be disastrous for consumer choice and competition," said Virgin.

Virgin Atlantic Airways is adamant that it is still in the race to take over UK carrier BMI after making another offer, which Lufthansa wants to discuss next week.

A source close to the negotiations told Flightglobal that Lufthansa responded on Virgin's latest bid within the last 12 hours and wants to talk about it in the coming week.

This would suggest that the previous offer by the UK airline might have been too low, but a spokeswoman for Virgin dismissed the notion.

British Airways parent International Airlines Group had reached a tentative agreement to acquire BMI.

Virgin, which has frequently touted the potential for a tie-up with BMI, insisted there were significant competition concerns with the IAG bid. The spokeswoman said Virgin was still in serious bidding talks with Lufthansa.

Lufthansa could not immediately be reached for comment about the possible discussion.

Slow 747-8I sales not a concern for Lufthansa

By: [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] : 02:00 28 May 2008
Source: [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]

German flag carrier [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] is unconcerned about its continuing status as the only confirmed airline customer for the passenger version of the [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], insisting that freighter conversion potential means the aircraft will hold its value.
Slow sales of the 747-8I have not prompted a rethink at the German airline. Lufthansa chief executive Wolfgang Mayrhuber says the carrier is "not at all" bothered about its lonely position, pointing to the airline's experience with 747s and the type's enduring appeal as a freighter.

"We could operate the [747-8] for 20 or 30 years and then use them as freighters," he (Mayrhuber) says. "They will retain their value."

Lufthansa the first to order Boeing's 747-8

Carrier to buy 20, but maintains loyalty to Airbus

By : JAMES WALLAC, Seattle Post-Intelligencer[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir cette image]
P-I AEROSPACE REPORTER
Updated 10:00 p.m., Wednesday, December 6, 2006

Calling The Boeing Co.'s new 747-8 a "highly modern" passenger jet, Germany's flagship carrier Lufthansa became the first customer to order what will be the biggest 747 ever.
"The Boeing 747-8 is more than just a derivative of the successful Boeing 747 series," Lufthansa Chief Executive [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien] said Wednesday after the airline ordered 20 of the planes and took options to buy 20 more.
...
But another Lufthansa executive said the decision to buy the 747-8 should not be seen as anything negative against the A380, which is two years behind schedule. "It was a well-evaluated decision to go with the 747-8, rather than us being against something else," [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], senior vice president of fleet planning for Lufthansa, said at a hastily arranged news conference in Seattle with Boeing executives.
......In addition to the 20 747- 8s, Lufthansa also ordered seven A340-600s from Airbus.
Lufthansa is one of the few airlines in the world that continues to order the four-engine A340 rather than Boeing's more fuel-efficient two-engine 777. Buchholz said the A340- 600 complements Lufthansa's fleet. It seats about 300 passengers in Lufthansa's configuration. "It makes a lot of sense to have it in our fleet," he said.
.....
The 747-8 will "fit nicely" between the A340-600 and the A380, Buchholz said.

Lufthansa will be the first airline to operate the 747-8 Intercontinental, starting in 2010 when the plane becomes available. Deliveries of the first 20 planes are scheduled into 2013.
Buchholz said the market will determine when Lufthansa might begin to take additional planes.

The 747-8 Intercontinental has an average list price of $277.5 million. But as the launch customer for the 747-8 Intercontinental, Lufthansa probably received a discount of more than 30 percent.

Lufthansa received a "very good price," said [Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien], vice president of sales for Boeing Commercial Airplanes. The airline also has already negotiated the price on its 20 options.

The 747-8 ......will have the fuel-efficient engines developed by General Electric for the 787 Dreamliner.
The 747-8 also will have a redesigned and more efficient wing. Lufthansa has long urged Boeing to develop a bigger version of the 747, but it was not until the new engines came along that Boeing could design an updated version of its jumbo jet that made economic sense for airlines.

• depuis le nombre initialement prévu (405,...... déjà bien inférieur au nombre de 467 affiché par Boeing ... ), ...
  
  
• au nombre de 386 !
  

"The engines were the breakthrough," Buchholz acknowledged.

Ceux qui doutent de l'authenticité de ce scénario n'ont aucune base factuelle pour contredire l'analyse ou les conclusions dans ce post.

Boeing plans to fly its first 747-8 Intercontinental for a visit to Lufthansa, its airline launch customer for the aircraft, from 6 to 9 December (Sevrien : 2011).

The arrival in Germany occurs exactly six years to the day when Lufthansa placed the launch order for 20 of the General Electric GEnx-2B67-powered aircraft in 2006.

The aircraft is expected arrive at the airline's Frankfurt, Germany base in the early afternoon local time following a 9h flight from Seattle, with three Lufthansa pilots and two Boeing pilots on board.

While in Germany the aircraft will be used to validate ground-handling processes with the airline's equipment.

The aircraft, the second of three in the -8I test fleet dubbed RC021, was responsible for conducting interior evaluations on the new type, which will enter service in the first quarter of 2012 with 386-seats, including the carrier's new business class offering supplied by B/E Aerospace.

RC021 is painted with a white body, gray belly and navy blue tail, representing Lufthansa's colours, but excludes the airline's decals. This particular aircraft will enter Lufthansa's fleet in the third quarter 2012 as the carrier's fifth delivery following post-flight test refurbishment.

First delivery of a 747-8I is slated for early 2012 to a completion centre to be configured as a VIP transport.

Hugot2 a écrit:BA-Iberia semblent avoir remporté la partie pour B.M.I.

Pour BMIbaby et Regional...?

[Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]

PARIS — British Airways and the Spanish carrier Iberia beat out Virgin Atlantic on Thursday in the bidding for British Midland International, the unprofitable airline being sold by Lufthansa of Germany.

The International Airlines Group, the parent company of British Airways and Iberia, will pay £172.5 million (about $270 million) for the airline, known as B.M.I.

That topped a competing bid from Virgin Atlantic Airways.

The purchase would give the group 56 additional daily takeoff and landing slots at Heathrow Airport, Europe’s
busiest, where it already controls 45 percent of the commercial air traffic.

International Airlines warned that it would make a “significant” reduction in its £172.5 million offer if Lufthansa did not find other buyers for Bmibaby and BMI Regional before completion of the deal, which is expected in the first quarter of next year.

“BMI Regional and Bmibaby are not part of our plans,” International Airlines said.

B.M.I.said in October that it was in “advanced discussions” to sell BMI Regional by the end of the year to a British investment group, which it did not identify.

But according to one person with knowledge of Lufthansa’s plans, it has held initial discussions with a British-based aviation company about a possible sale.

The German carrier will be selling its B.M.I. investment at a loss.

Lufthansa paid £223 million, including an initial stake purchased from B.M.I.’s founder, Michael Bishop, in 1999.

Lufthansa was then forced to take majority control when Mr. Bishop exercised a put option of his 50 percent plus one share stake in 2008.

Rien n'y fit ! Lufthansa a dû s'exécuter !

• "La gestion du Groupe Lufthansa a été mauvaise", = "La gestion du Groupe Bmi par Groupe Lufthansa a été mauvaise".
  

Lufthansa Group has detailed the harsh conditions under which it will sell BMI to International Airlines Group, including a potential substantial net loss from the deal. Lufthansa faces heavy net loss from BMI sale to IAG.

While the two sides have agreed a binding cash purchase price of £172.5 million ($271 million), this is subject to heavy price reduction if Lufthansa does not choose to sell the budget arm BMIbaby before completion of the sale. Lufthansa also currently has the option to sell BMI Regional.

Lufthansa admitted that, after agreed reductions, the net purchase price is "expected to be significantly negative".

Normal ! Au lieu de créer de la valeur,.... l'apport et la gestion lamentables de Groupe Lufthansa dans l'affaire Bmi, a détruit de la valeur. Si, si, .... il y a eu destruction de la valeur, au lieu de création de la valeur !

Under the agreement with IAG reached today, the German company will also take on BMI's defined pension benefit scheme through a UK holding company.
But Lufthansa said that the decision meant it would be "dissociating from a sustainably loss-making subsidiary".

British Airways parent IAG will gain BMI's slot portfolio at London Heathrow, increasing access by up to 56 daily slot pairs.

The agreement is still subject to regulatory clearance.

Chief executive Willie Walsh said the acquisition would give IAG a "unique opportunity to grow at Heathrow". He added that the company would maintain a "comprehensive domestic schedule" as well as expand its long-haul network.

Both sides are intending to complete the transaction by the end of the first quarter of 2012.

Lufthansa chief Christoph Franz said it was "especially important for us to find the solution that best provides the company and its employees with sustainable prospects for the future".

Lufthansa has made it clear that it will pass on the cost of its compulsory inclusion the European Union's Emissions Trading System (ETS) to its customers through higher ticket prices.

Aviation's inclusion in ETS took effect on 1 January 2012.

The German carrier expects the scheme to generate additional expenses of approximately €130 million ($169 million) in 2012.

These costs will be included in the existing fuel surcharge, the company said.

Lufthansa increased its fuel surcharge last month, two weeks before ETS came into force. The airline added it has "no immediate plans" to raise the fuel surcharge again, but did not rule out a later increase.

"European operators are now facing additional costs which will make flying within and via Europe more expensive for passengers," said group board member Carsten Spohr.

The EU will provide 85% of the required carbon dioxide certificates free of charge in 2012, while 15% will have to be purchased by the airlines. In the 2013-20 period, airlines will receive 82% of their allowances for free, with 3% being reserved by the EU for new entrants and fast-growing airlines.

Lufthansa calculated that it will need to buy "at least 35% of the certificates it needs", due to the group's growth in recent years.

The carbon credit allocations are based on average emissions between 2004 and 2006.

Lufthansa To Use Temporary Crew To Cut Costs

Lufthansa plans to hire temporary staff as flight attendants for routes to and from Berlin’s new airport to cut costs.

A spokesman for Lufthansa told Reuters on Wednesday about 200 flight attendants will be employed by a Lufthansa-owned temp agency rather than by the airline itself.

While entry-level salaries will be on a par with those at Lufthansa—1,700 euros ($2,200) gross salary per month plus benefits—contracts will end after two years. The temporary crew can then apply for a new job with Lufthansa.

The plan has come to the attention of trade union Verdi. “We believe that Lufthansa is in breach of current law,” a spokeswoman said.

Lufthansa last month announced it will launch a new cost-cutting program this year because a weakening global economy and high fuel costs have hit its profit.

The plan has come to the attention of trade union Verdi. “We believe that Lufthansa is in breach of current law,” a spokeswoman said.

Lufthansa Group traffic grows 7.5% in 2011, load factors dip

All five Lufthansa Group airlines carried a total of 106.3 million passengers in 2011, a growth of 7.5% compared to the previous year. The group’s ASKs grew by 9.8% overall in 2011, while RPKs rose 7%. Average passenger load factor fell by 2.2% to 77.2%.

Passenger boardings were 65.5 million, up 11.1% compared to the previous year. Capacity rose by 11.8% in the full year, while sales were up 8.8%. Load factor was 77.2%, down 2.2% year-over-year.

Swiss International Air Lines carried approximately 16.4 million passengers, up 8% compared to the year before, but load factor dropped slightly by 1.1% to 81.1%.

Loss-making Austrian Airlines transported 11.3 million passengers, up 3.4% compared to 2010, but load factor fell 3% to 73.8%, mainly because it is operating larger aircraft ([Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]).

British Midland International (bmi), which has been sold to British Airways parent IAG, transported 5.7 million passengers, 7.4% less compared to 2010. Load factor fell 4.6%, to 67.1% year-over-year ([Vous devez être inscrit et connecté pour voir ce lien]).

Germanwings carried 7.5 million passengers, 2.7% less than the year before. Load factor increased slightly by 1%.

Lufthansa Cargo recorded a 5% growth in its tonne-kilometers transported in 2011 and carried 1.9 million tonnes of freight and mail. Capacity grew by 8.6% in the full year, while sales were up 6.5%, resulting in a load factor drop by 1.4% to 69.5%.

“The trend of decreasing sales that emerged in the autumn continued in the remaining months of the year,” LH said in a statement. “Group-wide, it proved not possible to match the level of sales growth recorded at the beginning of the year.” In the light of this development and ongoing economic uncertainty, the Passenger Airline Group plans to achieve a 3% low-level growth in ASKs in the full-year 2012. This will be realized by using larger aircraft and introducing the new Europe cabin on LH Passenger Airlines' European routes, according to LH.

Lufthansa Launches Cost-Savings Program

Lufthansa yesterday as expected launched a wide-ranging cost-savings program that is aimed at improving profitability by €1.5 billion ($1.9 billion). Some key points have been presented to senior management of the group’s various divisions, although details have not yet been defined. The savings target is expected to be reached within three years and produce full results for the first time in the 2015 financial year.

The group named Josef Bogdanski and Joerg Beissel as the heads of the new project. Bogdanski previously was in charge of the passenger airline’s distribution and defined its new strategy for the Berlin market. Beissel was bureau chief of CFO Stephan Gemkow. Bogdanski and Beissel are aided by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG).

Three areas so far have been defined as core to the new program: administrative streamlining, more integration of the various subsidiaries and a tougher approach toward joint purchasing. Lufthansa’s various subsidiaries, such as Swiss and Austrian, are enjoying significant autonomy, which has created duplicate functions in some areas. One idea behind the program is to keep the airlines as separate entities, but to improve back-office cooperation. There is already significant integration of networks, leading industry observers to question the savings potential of more integration.

On the administrative side, the potential for cuts is considerable, officials note. However, Lufthansa has never made large job cuts and would have to depart from its corporate culture if it planned to do so this time.

Joint procurement has been a long-standing issue in the group and has been approached before. At least one previous project failed to generate the expected savings.

Air France-KLM launched a similar profit improvement program last month. Both carriers face the same structural problems: a high cost-base with revenues and yields under pressure because of low-cost carriers and emerging competitors on profitable long-haul routes. Air France-KLM admitted that it is losing about €700 million annually on its short-haul network. Industry sources believe that Lufthansa’s short- and medium-haul deficit totals about €300-400 million.

Pourquoi Lufthansa surclasse Air France-KLM

En 2011, malgré la crise en Europe et la cherté du kérosène, Lufthansa a dégagé un bénéfice opérationnel de 820 millions d'euros quand Air France-KLM a affiché une perte de 353 millions. Explications.


1,173 milliard d'euros. C'est l'écart de performances opérationnelles entre Lufthansa et Air France-KLM en 2011, les deux premiers groupes aériens en Europe avec des chiffres d'affaires de 28,7 milliards d'euros pour le groupe allemand ( 8,6 % par rapport à 2010) et 24,36 milliards d'euros ( 4,5 %) pour son rival français.

Lufthansa, qui détaillait ce jeudi ses résultats 2011, a en effet dégagé un bénéfice opérationnel de 820 millions d'euros (hors son boulet, la filiale BMI, en cours de cession à British Airways) quand les pertes opérationnelles d'Air France-KLM se sont élevées à 353 millions d'euros. IAG, qui coiffe British Airways et Iberia (16 milliards d'euros de chiffre d'affaires), a, quant à lui, dégagé un bénéfice opérationnel de 485 millions d'euros. Le résultat net, qui ne traduit pas la performance des entreprises, est passé dans le rouge chez Lufthansa à hauteur de - 13 millions d'euros. La perte nette d'Air France-KLM a été de 809 millions.

Pourquoi cette différence ? Et surtout pourquoi dans un environnement aussi difficile pour le transport aérien européen (crise en Europe, prix du carburant au plus haut, concurrence des low-cost), Lufthansa parvient non seulement à ne pas être dans le rouge mais réussit à dégager près d'un milliard de bénéfices opérationnels, un niveau de résultat digne des années d'avant crise. Plusieurs facteurs l'expliquent

Le poids des filiales de maintenance et de restauration à bord

En comparaison avec Air France-KLM, Lufthansa peut compter sur une activité hors transport aérien pur (donc non impactée par l'envolée du carburant) très lucrative. Ces filiales contribuent fortement aux bénéfices du groupe. Lufthansa Technik (maintenance) est la plus importante d'entre elles. Elle profite de la vague porteuse de ce secteur, tout comme d'ailleurs Air France Industries.

Sauf que Lufthansa Technik (4 milliards d'euros de chiffre d'affaires) est quatre fois plus gros, avec des profits importants à la clé. Cette année, malgré plusieurs provisions passées sur des contrats, ils se sont élevés à 257 millions d'euros, contre 110 millions pour Air France Industries, qui a réalisé une très bonne performance. A cela s'ajoutent les activités catering (restauration à bord) de LSG Skychef et de logiciels informatiques, qui ont apporté respectivement 85 et 19 millions d'euros de bénéfices opérationnels au groupe allemand.

La performance étonnante du cargo

Autre grosse source de bénéfices, le cargo. Lufthansa a gagné 257 millions d'euros (la deuxième meilleure performance de son histoire) quand Air France-KLM en a perdu 60 malgré une forte restructuration au cours des années précédentes et une réorientation stratégique majeure vers le transport de marchandises dans les soutes des avions passagers.

« C'est impressionnant, notamment au quatrième trimestre où il n'y a pas eu de pic d'activité. Lufthansa est à la fois très flexible et peut compter sur son partenariats avec La Poste pour rentabiliser l'outil de production », explique un analyste. Si le groupe a bénéficié de la puissance des exportations allemandes, il a été pénalisé par la nouvelle réglementation sur les vols de nuit à l'aéroport de Francfort plus contraignante.

Swiss, la pépite

Qu'en est-il donc pour le transport de passagers, le cœur de métier des deux groupes européens ? Les différences sont là aussi importantes. Le groupe Lufthansa a dégagé un bénéfice opérationnel de 349 millions alors qu'Air France-KLM affiché une perte de 375 millions. Dans cette activité fortement impactée par les coûts du carburant, Lufthansa peut compter sur une pépite : Swiss, créée sur les cendres de Swissair après sa liquidation en 2001 et rachetée par Lufthansa en 2005.

« C'est la vache à lait de Lufthansa », explique le PDG d'Air France-KLM, Jean-Cyril Spinetta. « Swiss est positionné sur un marché riche, son image est remarquable, ses coûts ont diminué depuis la faillite de Swissair et ses revenus sont élevés grâce à une clientèle à hauts revenus », précise t-il. Toutes les filiales n'affichent pas la même santé. Austrian Airlines a perdu 62 millions, la low-cost Germanwings 52 millions. Lufthansa est d'ailleurs prête à injecter 140 millions dans Austrian à condition que les syndicats valident son plan de restructuration.

Quant aux bénéfices de la compagnie Lufthansa, vaisseau amiral du groupe éponyme, ils ont chuté de 56 % mais restent dans le vert pour s'élever encore à 168 millions d'euros. Pa rapport à Air France-KLM, le groupe allemand bénéficie notamment d'une productivité de son personnel navigant 35 % meilleure que celle d'Air France sur le réseau moyen-courrier.

• (i) malgré ses paroles 'diplomatiques', LH n'est absolument pas 'fan' de ce genre d'opération de remotorisation / NEO;
  
• (ii) il est permis de se demander si LH n'a pas envie de contribuer à l'effort financier, qui permettra à Airbus de financer le programme A350-XWB, sans avoir recours à des financements suscptibles de prolonger l'actuel dossier USA / Boeing - UE / Airbus en train d'être traité par l'OMC ;
  
• (iii) LH n'aurait pas manifeste un quelconque intérêt pour le B737-MAX ;
  
• (iv) point (ii) ci-dessus aurait tendance à suggérer que LH soit (ou reste) positif à l'égard du programme A350-XWB.
  

Lufthansa's air freight arm may give up on its freighter fleet should a recently imposed ban on night flights at Frankfurt airport be confirmed by a court in Leipzig on April 4, the unit's chief executive told a German magazine.

The current solution of scheduling take-offs and landings only before 2200 CET and after 0500 CET was "just a stopgap. It costs money and does not pay," Karl Ulrich Garnadt told Focus, according to an article published on Monday.

If necessary Lufthansa Cargo may have to part ways with its freighter fleet in the long-term, consisting of 18 McDonnell Douglas MD 11 planes, Focus quoted Garnadt as saying.

The magazine said around half of Lufthansa Cargo's freight is transported via passenger planes.

Previously, Garnadt said the night flight ban at Frankfurt, imposed in October, would hurt earnings by around EUR€40 million (USD$53 million) a year and sales by over EUR€100 million if it were made permanent.

Lufthansa Cargo made an operating profit of EUR€249 million in 2011, but said it would be unable to replicate this in 2012 due to overcapacity, a weak Chinese market and the night flight ban at its Frankfurt hub.

(Reuters)