One of the leading air carriers in Europe has announced that it will be launching a brand-new airline.
According to the announcement, the purpose of this launch is to serve short-haul operations throughout the continent.
Lufthansa, which is the flagship airline of Germany, stated that the new fleet will make room for a reduction in traveling costs.
There is no doubt that it is the biggest airline group in all of Europe and is now planning to expand further with the launch of the new airline.
New airline
City Airlines, the new company, will be beginning operations in the summer of 2024. The delay in launch comes as it awaits approval, which it will be obtaining in the month of June of next year.
The German group gave a statement in which it revealed that the carrier will begin operating from the airports in Frankfurt and Munich.
This is because a significant number of Lufthansa’s long-haul flights depart from these airports.
With the launch of the new low-cost airline, the company is aiming to boost its competitiveness in the short-haul market as well.
As of now, the segment is mainly dominated by another subsidiary of the German group, namely Lufthansa CityLine.
However, the cost structure of this carrier is believed to be expensive as per management and the customers.
According to the announcement made by Lufthansa, both airlines will continue to operate together.
Employment strategy
After the announcement of the launch, the group revealed that it will shortly begin the recruitment process.
It added that it will be looking for cabin and cockpit staff from November and will be choosing candidates who have experience.
Moreover, the statement said that people who are currently working at Lufthansa CityLine, will be especially encouraged to apply for the new low-cost airline.
In the words of Lufthansa, former employees who worked for the low-cost subsidiary of the Germanwings group could also benefit. This airline shut down in 2020, leaving numerous employees without a job.
Due to this strategy, unions have shown outrage, saying that Lufthansa is using a legal sleight of hand to build its new team.
They believe that this move will allow Lufthansa to cut down on costs by recruiting people who are already a part of the group.
According to worker unions, not only will the company save up on training costs, but it will also hire people under less socially advantageous contracts for the low-cost airline.
Strikes
Back in the month of August, VC, a powerful pilot union, took to denouncing airlines that create operating subsidiaries for the sole purpose of ensuring pay cuts.
In the summer season, the organization went on multiple strikes for a rise in pay and improved working conditions, which caused the cancellation of a significant number of flights during that time.
As a result, the Lufthansa group raised pay by over 17% for the pilots to end the standoff that had caused substantial losses.
Shortly after the accusation from the pilots, Lufthansa said that it would be open to negotiate contract conditions with new employees for the low-cost carrier to ensure that they are competitive.
