by Lufthansa Flyer | Mar 25, 2015 | Featured, germanwings |
Since my last post several developments have taken place as we try to come to grips with the loss of flight 9525.
The Cockpit Voice Recorder has been recovered and sent to Paris where the data will be analyzed. I suspect it will only take a day or so for that analysis to yield a few answers.
Crash investigators have been dispatched to the area to begin their work. French agency BEA will send 7 of their specialists. Additionally, members from Germany’s Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accidents will join the French investigators. Airbus and engine manufacturer CFM also have sent their teams to investigate.
Lufthansa and Germanwings have been quite active in keeping us informed with details as they become available but there have not been any major developments in the past 12 hours. Predictably, the history of the specific aircraft has been thoroughly scrutinized. According to all accounts from LH and 4U, the airplane’s maintenance was current and had all necessary ‘upgrades’ and ‘directives’ in place as required by regulators.
As I said earlier, I am not going to share my opinions or join in the speculation as to what brought down the aircraft. I’ll continue to share and summarize official details as they become available. Doing anything to contrary at this point is fairly foolish.
In speaking with friends and colleagues within the airline, I can say with 100% conviction that they are doing everything they can to make this difficult time as comfortable as possible for those who have lost loved ones.
To stay up to date, I would recommend that you follow Lufthansa and Germanwings on their Facebook and Twitter accounts. Any breaking news and updates will be readily available through those portals as the investigation continues.
by Lufthansa Flyer | Mar 24, 2015 | Featured, germanwings |
I have no doubt that by now you have all heard of the tragedy that has hit the Lufthansa family today and have read many of the stories that have been reported by the media.
Unfortunately I am in Seattle on LH Business and have been with Boeing this morning so I am a bit behind on what has happened.
Germanwings flight 9525 was lost today when it crashed in French Alps during a flight from Barcelona to Dusseldorf. It is presumed that 144 passengers and 6 crew members were lost. Of the passenger roster, it appears that 16 German children returning from Holiday were aboard.
The cause of the crash has of course not been determined so I’m careful not to speculate. I’m sure that the authorities and professionals who specialize in this will have answers in the coming days.
What we do know is that the flight departed Barcelona at 10:01a and reached a cruising altitude of 38,000 feet at 10:45a. Within minutes it started an unexplained descent and lost contact with controllers and radar at 10:53a.
The flight crew was well seasoned, with the captain having over 10 years of experience and 6,000 hours of flight time.
The aircraft, formerly a Lufthansa A320 was 24 years old and was inspected by Lufthansa Technik on March 23 in Dusseldorf. The aircraft’s last major scheduled maintenance had been carried out in 2013.
Flightradar24 has done a solid job keeping track of all the data of the flight including its position, speeds and flight profile. You can keep up to date with their data via their Twitter handle: @FlightRadar24.
As more information becomes available, I will pass it along as soon as possible.
Thoughts and Prayers are with the families who have lost loved ones in this tragedy.
by Lufthansa Flyer | Mar 17, 2015 | Featured, germanwings, Lufthansa, Strike |
Lufthansa provided an update at 2p CEST that includes information on affected flights as part of the strike that is schedule for tomorrow. According to LH, up to a third of all flights scheduled for tomorrow may be impacted.
If you missed the headlines, the Pilot’s union called for a 24 hour strike beginning at 12:01a CEST on March 18 at Lufthansa and Germanwings focusing primarily on regional and short-haul routes.
USE THIS LINK TO SEE THE LIST OF CANCELLED FLIGHTS
For passengers whose flights are involved, LH has made it relatively easy to rebook your flights. You can look up your flights under MY BOOKINGS on Lufthansa.com where you can see if you’ve been rebooked on another flight. You’ll also have the option to request a full refund of your ticket as well. If you were ticketed by a travel agent, it may be easier to deal with them directly.
If your flights were within Germany, you’ll also have the option of transferring your ticket to Deutsche Bahn and take a train to your destination. This can be done online at LH.com or at any ticketing kiosk at the airport.
For more details, please visit Lufthansa’s Strike Update page.
by Lufthansa Flyer | Feb 11, 2015 | Featured, germanwings, Strike |
In the latest installment of the Lufthansa Pilot’s Strike Saga, it appears that Germanwings pilots are set to walk off the job for 2 days starting at midnight local time on Thursday, February 12, ending midnight on Friday, February 13.
Germanwings will be providing an update on Wednesday that will indicate the impact that the strike will have on their operations.
by Lufthansa Flyer | Jan 31, 2015 | Airlines, Eurowings, Featured, germanwings |
This Sunday, February 1, marks the first time that an A320 will fly under Lufthansa’s Eurowings LCC subsidiary. The ‘inaugural’ flight will take place between Hamburg and Prague – departing Hamburg at 10:55a and arriving in Prague at 12:00p. The aircraft will also sport Eurowing’s new livery.
D-AIZQ will be the first Eurowings A320 to enter service (Photo: Lufthansa)
Eurowings is part of a larger program known as ‘WINGS’ which focuses on the ‘leisure’ travel market and competes directly with other LCCs within Europe such as Ryanair, Easyjet, and others. The WINGS fleet serving Europe and nearby medium-haul destinations will be comprised of an A320 fleet. The A320s will be replacing the 23 Canadair CRJ900s currently being used by Eurowings. In all, 23 A320s will be in the fleet. 12 will be transferred from Lufthansa and 10 are on order from Airbus.
Plans call for all of Lufthansa’s LCCs including Germanwings to be consolidated into Eurowings, which will ultimately be Lufthansa’s only LCC division. This realignment should be completed by the end of this year and will feature destinations worldwide.
