by Lufthansa Flyer | May 13, 2015 | Cargo, Featured, Lufthansa |
Recently, I posted a piece highlighting the fact that South African Airways has put in place a policy that bans the transport of any large or endangered Wildlife Hunting Trophies aboard their passenger or cargo airplanes.
In addition to SAA, Emirates has now created a policy that takes effect on May 15 that also provides for the ban of Large Trophy Game transport on its aircraft as well.
To this end, I want to bring your attention to Lufthansa’s position on the topic.
I contacted LH Cargo soon after the SAA news to confirm what Lufthansa’s position is on this very important topic. I’m glad to report that LH has policies similar to the aforementioned airlines in place. In fact I think the LH policies may go a bit beyond what SAA has in place. According to the internal memo from SAA it targets only specific animals (Rhino, Elephant, Lion, and Tiger):
This leads me to think that SAA will still allow the transport of other Game not specifically listed in their internal communications.
In an email exchange with my contacts at Lufthansa Cargo, I was able to gain confirmation that Lufthansa and Lufthansa Cargo do not engage in the transport of Large Trophy Animals or animals protected under CITES 1.
From LH Cargo:
“We definitely do not transport large game trophies and, of course, no trophies for any endangered species, complying with CITES 1 regulations”
Animals that ‘qualify’ under CITES 1 include Elephant, Rhino, Lion, Tiger, Cheetah, Leopard, Zebra, Giraffe and other large game. Based on my interpretation of CITES 1, it provides for a ban on the commercial export or import of Game that is endangered or can potentially be endangered by harvesting. It does not apply to Game that is not at risk, such as Impala, Kudu and other antelope or small game not listed as an at-risk species.
If I interpret the LH statement correctly, it appears that they go beyond what is just required by CITES and may in fact go beyond what SAA and Emirates have put into place since they suggest that they transport NO Large game, not just CITES 1 protected animals.
Personally, I would like to see airlines band together and create a standardized policy that addresses this very sensitive and important topic. If it one day becomes impossible to transport ANY Animal Trophy due to airline policies, we will have made major strides in reducing the amount of senseless murders that take place of defenseless animals.
If game hunters realize that they can’t bring home the carcass of what they senselessly slaughtered while on vacation, perhaps then the animals will have a fighting chance.
by Lufthansa Flyer | May 12, 2015 | Featured, Lufthansa, Premium Economy |
Today marks the 50% benchmark of Lufthansa’s Premium Economy rollout. In total, 53 aircraft now combine to provide passengers with approximately 2,000 Premium Economy seats. As of today, 33 LH destinations have Premium Economy available to passengers.
Specifically, all 747-8i and A380 aircraft have been retrofitted. 15 out of 18 Munich-Based A340-600 along with both Dusseldorf-based A340-300s are complete as well.
Going forward, the remainder of the A340-300 fleet is scheduled to be completed in the next few weeks, followed by the 747-400s and Frankfurt-based A340-600s which will start their conversions by September, and be completed by year end. All A330 aircraft will also be finished by the end of the year. Additionally, all of the ‘JUMP’ based A340-300s will also be finished this year as well.
Keep in mind that these dates are soft targets and some adjustments to the timeline should be expected.
By the way, Lufthansa is currently running a Premium Economy Sale….
by Lufthansa Flyer | May 9, 2015 | Boeing, Featured, Fleet Update, Frankfurt, Lufthansa, Munich |
Over the past week Lufthansa Group made 3 separate announcements concerning the fleet, including new orders and an update for existing orders.
The first announcement dealt with SWISS and their decision to order 3 additional 777 aircraft. These 777-300ERs will join the 6 777s already on order from Boeing and will begin to show up in the fleet during 2016. The 777 aircraft will allow SWISS to start retiring a portion of the 15 A340-300 aircraft currently in service.
SWISS now has 9 777-300ER aircraft on order.
Next, Lufthansa provided an update on their A350 order. Beginning at the end of 2016, the first of 25 A350s will start showing up in the fleet with the first handful of the type operating out of Munich and will allow for the gradual phase out of A330 and A340 aircraft. Ultimately Lufthansa will have 25 A350s in the fleet based in Frankfurt and Munich. One outstanding feature of the A350 is the fact that it will only take 3/4 of a gallon of fuel to carry one passenger 62 miles (2.9 liters per 100km). That equates to a 25% increase in fuel efficiency over most new aircraft today AND it’s 30% quieter.
LH’s new A350 will bring a distinct new look to the fleet in Frankfurt and Munich.
To round out the busy week of announcements, SWISS announced that it will be the first operator of the new Bombardier CS series beginning in the first half of 2016. In 2009, SWISS was announced as the launch customer for the type.
SWISS’ new Bombardier CS100
For those of you attending the Paris Air Show, Bombardier will have a CS100 on display in SWISS colors. Bombardier also plans to bring the SWISS CS100 to Zurich after the air show as part of its tour. Hopefully, all of the delays are behind the program and we can finally start seeing these new planes replace the aging Jumbolinos!
