Air Berlin Files For Bankruptcy….What Does That Mean For Lufthansa?
Earlier today, Air Berlin had done what most of us were expecting for some time when they filed for Bankruptcy protection. The filing came primarily as a result of Etihad’s withdrawing of any more funding to help keep the airline viable. Etihad had been a major stakeholder in ‘AB’ since January 2012.
The bankruptcy leaves Air Berlin in shambles as it is now left to scramble to either reorganize, sell off units, or simply cease operations. As it stands now, the German government has stepped in with a €150 million bailout that will keep Air Berlin operational for 3 months. During this time, ‘AB’ will be able to run as normal a schedule as possible, and ensure the employment of its 7,300 workers. This is especially important since we are in the midst of holiday travel season in Europe.
During this period, Lufthansa will continue business as usual as it relates to the 38 aircraft that it sublet from Air Berlin earlier this year in an effort designed to help AB regroup their operation.
Over the next weeks and months, suitors will emerge hoping to take over important gate space at airports where Air Berlin operates. Of course, with Berlin and Dusseldorf being the main hubs for AB, I suspected a heated bidding war to arise between the likes of Easyjet and Ryanair as they hope to make further inroads against Lufthansa on LH’s home turf.
Ryanair is already whining about LH having an unfair advantage due to all this happening in Germany, but Ryanair whines because it is what it does best when it doesn’t get its way.
Lufthansa has stated that it expects to compete successfully for the Air Berlin business due to its ‘home field’ advantage and its existing relationship with Air Berlin. In fact, LH is already in talks with German and Air Berlin officials to craft a way forward that minimizes the impact of a complete shut down of Air Berlin.
Call it luck or brilliance, but Lufthansa appears to have played Air Berlin perfectly. LH did not spend much time, money, or manpower to take on Air Berlin directly with their Eurowings unit. Instead they saw the writing on the wall several months ago and waited patiently for their opportunity to arise. Along the way, they offered help to support their fellow ‘countryman’, knowing full well that AB did not have a chance at survival and that Etihad would pull it’s life line from Air Berlin. Now in the end, Eurowings is most likely to be the biggest benefactor and should see an exponential increase in size and presence in Europe’s Low Cost Carrier market. Much to the chagrin of RyanAir, Easyjet, and others.
