The national airline of Germany is Lufthansa Airlines. In terms of passengers carried, it ranks as the second-largest airline in Europe when combined with its subsidiaries. In 1997, Lufthansa was one of the original members that founded the Star Alliance, the largest airline alliance in the world.
Prior to 1994, Lufthansa was a state-owned corporation. Since 1966, all German stock markets have allowed the public to trade Deutsche Lufthansa AG shares. The Frankfurt Stock Exchange trades the DAX index share of Lufthansa, which utilizes Xetra technology for electronic and floor trading.
As a member of the Lufthansa Group. Lufthansa AG owns a number of firms involved in the aviation industry, including Lufthansa Technik and LSG Sky Chefs. With nearly 700 aircraft in total, the firm has one of the largest airline fleets in the world.
The corporate headquarters and registered office of Lufthansa Airlines are located in Cologne. Lufthansa operates a secondary Flight Operations Centre at Munich Airport. which functions as its secondary hub. It situates its main operations base, the Lufthansa Aviation Center, at the major hub of Frankfurt Airport.
In 1955, East Germany attempted to launch its own airline using the Lufthansa name, but this led to a legal conflict with West Germany, where Lufthansa was already operating. In 1963, East Germany shut down its Lufthansa and designated Interflug as the official airline of the country.
One of four purchasers of the 737-100s, Lufthansa was the company that ordered the first Boeing 737. Out of the five founders of the Star Alliance—NASA, Malaysia-Singapore Airlines, and Avianca—Lufthansa intended to get the first aeroplane. It was, however, the last one to be delivered. The first foreign airliner launched by Boeing had Lufthansa as a customer.
Lufthansa adopted a new corporate identity in 1988. Together with redesigning the cabins, municipal offices, and airport lounges, the fleet received a new livery.
In order to establish autonomous operating companies for the aviation group, such as Lufthansa Technik, Lufthansa Cargo, and Lufthansa Systems, Lufthansa underwent various structural adjustments. LSG Sky Chefs, Condor, and Lufthansa CityLine were the three new enterprises that later joined the Lufthansa Group.
On December 6, 2001, Lufthansa announced its order for 15 Airbus A380 superjumbos, with an option to add 10 more flights. The airline later confirmed the order. The A380 fleet would exclusively operate long-distance flights departing from Frankfurt.
The German government offered a €9 billion bailout to support the airline through COVID-19-induced economic issues. With this bailout, the government’s stake in the airline increased to 20%, and also grant it board seats, while diluting existing shareholder stakes.
It is widely acknowledged that F.A. Fischer von Puturzyn is responsible for the name’s original invention. He wrote a book named “Luft-Hansa” in 1925 that explored the choices then-existing aviation planners had. The new airline that resulted from the integration of Junkers’ airline (Luftverkehr AG) and Deutscher Aero Lloyd was named Luft Hansa.
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