Invalid request error occurred.Lufthansa Group’s decision to streamline operations and transfer domestic and intra-european flights (except for those operating from Frankfurt and Munich) exclusively to Germanwings is starting to show up in their reservation systems.

Over the next few days, expect to see “LH” flight numbers to be replaced with “4U” flight numbers across most flights that do not operate to or from Frankfurt or Munich. For those of you unfamiliar with Germanwings, “4U” is their IATA Airline code just as “LH” is Lufthansa’s.

It looks as though Berlin-Stuttgart has already gone through that changeover and several “4U” flight numbers are already in place. I looked at several sample bookings and have seen many instances of the new “4U” flight numbers. “4U” flight numbers will be in the 4U2000 and 4U8000 ranges.

Two weeks ago, Lufthansa decided to retain the “Germanwings” name as it consolidates it Regional and Germanwings division into one Low Cost Carrier (LCC). Expect additional announcements between now and year’s end regarding topics such as flight booking, existing reservations in place for 2013 and frequent flyer program impact. I’ll certainly be covering these topics as they evolve.