by Lufthansa Flyer | Jun 11, 2013 | Airlines |
The last 10 days have not seen too many dramatic updates or changes from Star Alliance member carriers. THAI was the most active with 9 adjustments to it’s upcoming winter timetable for 2013/2014.
AEGEAN:
Irakleion-Istanbul(IST) effective between June 13 and September 8 will BEGIN 2x/week service.
AIR CHINA:
Beijing-Dusseldorf effective September 3 will be reduced from 4x/week to 3x/week.
TAM:
Sao Paulo-New York (JFK) effective September 21 will increase from 7x/week to 11x/week.
Sao Paulo-Orlando effective between October 16 and December 12 will be reduced from 14x/week to 11x/week.
THAI:
Bangkok-Brussels effective October 27 will increase from 3x/week to 4x/week.
Bangkok-Sapporo effective October 27 will increase from 4x/week to 1x/DAY.
Bangkok-Taipei effective October 27 will increase from 14x/week to 18x/week.
Bangkok-Ahmedabad effective October 27 will increase from 2x/week to 4x/week (Operated by SMILE).
Bangkok-Mandalay effective October 27 will increase from 5x/week to 1x/DAY.
Bangkok-Xiamen effective October 27 will increase from 4x/week to 5x/week.
Phuket-Delhi effective October 27 will increase from 2x/week to 4x/week (Operated by SMILE).
Phuket -Kuala Lumpur effective October 27 will increase from 4x/week to 1x/DAY (Operated by SMILE).
Phuket-Mumbai effective October 27 will increase from 2x/week to 3x/week (Operated by SMILE).
UNITED:
Cleveland-Austin effective September 25 will BEGIN 6x/week service.
Newark-Bozeman effective between December 21 and January 5 and from February 15 to March 30 will increase from 1x/week to 2x/week.
Newark-Jackson Hole effective between February 10 and April 4 will increase from 1x/week to 2x/week.
PREVIOUS STAR ALLIANCE ROUTE ANNOUNCEMENTS
by Lufthansa Flyer | Jun 10, 2013 | Airlines |
Thanks to those wonderful unions, A significant Air Traffic Controller work stoppage is expected in several European countries this week. The effort is being led by French Air Traffic Controllers who decided to strike for 3 days beginning Tuesday, June 11. As a result of the french strike announcements, several other countries controllers will join in sympathy including Belgium, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Italy and Portugal. The sympathy strike by these nations is set for Wednesday based on the information that I’ve gathered.
The strike is apparently in response to the EU’s transportation commissioner’s speech which is scheduled for Tuesday. The topic he will be discussing will be a new set of laws that will centralize air traffic management to a single agency within the EU instead of each country having its own set of rules/regulations etc.
The major impact of this work action will affect travelers going to, or transiting French airports. Most airlines have announced contingency plans and flight cancellations for this time frame. If you’re traveling in the affected areas, check with your airline to see what options you may have.
Lufthansa has already cancelled 125 flights that had been scheduled for Paris, Lyon, Toulouse, Nice and Marseille.
by Lufthansa Flyer | Jun 8, 2013 | Airlines |
Each June, Lufthansa releases a report called “Balance” which summarizes a variety of accomplishments realized by the airline for the previous calendar year. It’s akin to an annual report, but without the detailed financial data that typically is found in an annual report. “Balance” also provides an annual update on Lufthansa Group’s fleet, social and environmental initiatives as well as demographic information regarding Lufthansa’s corporate structure.
For the purposes of this post, I’ll focus on a few key Lufthansa accomplishments as far as their environmental initiatives are concerned. To learn more about other accomplishments, you can read about them in the Balance Report. It’s actually a very good read, with great information, charts, graphics and photos.
Environmental Stewardship Initiatives/Accomplishments:
- Lufthansa set a new fuel consumption record. For 2012 Lufthansa burned only 4.06 liters (1.07 gallons) to fly one passenger 100km (62 miles), making air travel more efficient than most hybrid automobiles. This is a 3% improvement over 2011’s performance while carrying .2 percent more passengers in 2012.
- Between now and 2025, Lufthansa will invest €22 billion in fleet renewal, taking delivery of 236 new aircraft.
- Testing is underway to eliminate the need for aircraft to taxi to or from the runway under it’s own engine power. Expect in the not too distant future for aircraft to be taxied to and from the runway with electric powered tugs or electric drive motors on the aircraft. The objective is to further increase fuel efficiency as well as to reduce ‘airport noise’.
- In December of 2012, A test was conducted to determine how much weight an A340-300 could lose by simply removing unnecessary items from the aircraft (excess magazines, blankets, hangars, trolleys, etc). The exercise was carried out by several Lufthansa employees who boarded the A340 and started removing excess items from the aircraft. This activity demonstrated that by reducing an aircraft’s weight by only 100 kilograms but removing ‘extra stuff’ from each aircraft in the fleet, Lufthansa would save €2.6 million in fuel costs annually. Hard to fathom, but the numbers don’t lie.
- On May 8, 2012 Lufthansa received the Gold-Eco award from Airline Transport World magazine for its accomplishments and commitment to environmental issues.
The list doesn’t end there. 2012 had a slew of accomplishments and the launch of many new endeavors. As I said earlier, take a few minutes to browse the “Balance 2013” report. What the Lufthansa Group accomplished in a year is impressive.
