While not as large as Turkish Airlines’ recent order, Lufthansa Group announced a major order for a mix of 80 Airbus and Boeing narrowbodies with options for a further 120 aircraft. Continue reading to learn more. Lufthansa Group Orders...
While not as large as Turkish Airlines’ recent order, Lufthansa Group announced a major order for a mix of 80 Airbus and Boeing narrowbodies with options for a further 120 aircraft.
Continue reading to learn more.
The A220s will be used by Lufthansa City Airlines. (Credit: Airbus)
Lufthansa Group Orders Up to 200 Narrowbody Aircraft
As part of the order announced on December 19, 2023, Lufthansa Group will receive 40 Boeing 737-8s and 40 Airbus A220-300s between 2026 and 2032. The company will also have the option to purchase an additional 60 737-8s, 20 A220-300s, and 40 A320 series aircraft.
Lufthansa Group expects to receive the first 737-8 in the third quarter of 2027 and the first A220 from this batch at some point in 2026.
While the order is worth approximately 9 billion dollars at list prices, the list price is more or less never the actual price that airlines end up paying.
Currently, Lufthansa Group has one of the oldest narrowbody fleets of the major European airlines. With this new order, the group’s Member of the Executive Board, Fleet and Technology, Dr. Detlef Kayser says “…we are accelerating the largest fleet modernization in our company’s history.”
Lufthansa Group has a total of 280 aircraft on order. In addition to narrowbodies, the airline group also has widebody aircraft including 787s, 777Xs, and A350s in its order backlog.
The Airbus A220-300s Will Join Lufthansa City Airlines’ Fleet
Lufthansa Group already operates the Airbus A220. Specifically, Swiss has 30 airframes consisting of a mix of the shorter A220-100 and longer A220-300. The newly ordered A220s will, however, head to a different airline in the group.
They will join Lufthansa City Airlines, a Lufthansa subsidiary established in 2022 most likely established as a cost-cutting measure. The airline received its air operator’s certificate earlier this year and is expected to start operating intra-European flights on Lufthansa’s behalf at some point in 2024.
Initially, Lufthansa City Airlines will launch operations with Airbus A319s that will be transferred to it from another Lufthansa subsidiary, Lufthansa CityLine.
Now it is also clear the airline will operate at least 40 Airbus A220-300 aircraft. Each of the aircraft will be equipped with 148 economy class seats (although the front rows will most likely be sold as “Euro business class”). This comes as a blow to Embraer which was hoping to sell the airline its Embraer E2 Jets.
Austrian and Brussels Airlines the Most Likely to Use the 737-8s
While Lufthansa Group specifically announced the A220s are for Lufthansa City Airlines, it did not reveal its plans about which of the group’s airlines the 737 MAX aircraft will be allocated.
Currently, no Lufthansa Group airline operates Boeing narrowbodies. That said, in the past, three airlines used to operate multiple 737 variants:
Lufthansa operated 737-100s, 737-200s, 737-300s, 737-400s, and 737-500s at various points between 1967 and 2016 Austrian operated a fleet of 737-600s, 737-700s, and 737-800s between 2008 and 2013, these were aircraft the airline got through its acquisition of Lauda Air Brussels Airlines operated a fleet of 737-300s and 737-400s until 2011, these were former Virgin Express aircraftWith Lufthansa having been a major 737 user for decades before going all-Airbus A320 series in 2016, signing the 737 MAX order is a major comeback for Boeing.
For decades, Lufthansa used to be a major 737 operator.
In the press release, Lufthansa Group states that “As the planned growth path for both Lufthansa Airlines, including Lufthansa City Airlines, and SWISS is already underpinned by aircraft orders, the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft will be deployed in one of the Lufthansa Group’s other flight operations. The decision on this will be made at a later date.”
This leaves Austrian, Brussels Airlines, Discover Airlines, Edelweiss, and Eurowings as the options.
The first two of those are the most likely. At this point, both Austrian and Brussels Airlines are set to receive five A320neos as part of their fleet modernization plans.
Those aircraft are, however, far from enough to replace their aging narrowbody fleets. Austrian has over 30 A320ceo (just under 19 years old on average) and A321ceo (over 26 years old on average) aircraft. Brussels Airlines has over 30 A319ceo and A320ceo (both about 18 years old on average) aircraft.
As such, chances are the 40 737-8s will be split roughly equally between Austrian and Brussels Airlines. The remaining A320ceo family aircraft the two families operate will likely be replaced in the future by firming up the 737-8 and/or A320 series options placed as part of the new order.
Austrian will most likely operate the 737 again.
Brussels Airlines is another candidate for adding the 737-8 to its fleet.
Summary
To renew its aging narrowbody fleet, Lufthansa Group ordered 80 Airbus A220 and Boeing 737-8 aircraft with options for a further 120. The aircraft are expected to be delivered between 2026 and 2032.
While it is clear the A220s are destined to Lufthansa’s new subsidiary City Airlines, it is not yet clear which airlines will use the 737-8s. What is clear, though, is that – at least for now – it will not be Lufthansa and Swiss. Most likely, it will be Austrian and Brussels Airlines.
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