Lufthansa Cargo is expanding its capacities to China and India to address the demand for the 2023 summer flight schedule.
The cargo carrier said in response it is adjusting its freighter route network on both long-haul and short- and medium-haul routes.
It added that weekly frequencies to destinations in China served by Boeing 777F aircraft will be both increased and combined in routing, offering customers more flexible capacity for the fast and direct transport of their shipments.
Lufthansa Cargo will also be expanding its A321F network on short- and medium-haul routes.
Lufthansa Cargo's current 2023 summer flight schedule includes a total of 79 weekly intercontinental connections.
It added that all long-haul destinations would be served from the international hub in Frankfurt by a total of 16 Boeing B777F aircraft.
Expanded capacities in China, India
"In particular, the route network will be expanded to include flights to China: In the future, Lufthansa Cargo will offer a total of ten freighter flights per week to Shanghai (PVG). On two of these Shanghai connections, Lufthansa Cargo will also fly to Chengdu (CTU), doubling its capacity there," Lufthansa said.
In addition, the carrier said the number of weekly flights to Hong Kong (HKG) would increase from five to six, including one stop in Almaty (ALA).
This destination in Kazakhstan was the last part of the route network in 2019 and will now be resumed, Lufthansa said.
"The combined service from Frankfurt via Mumbai (BOM) to Hyderabad (HYD) will also be increased to two flights per week," it added.
Meanwhile, Lufthansa Cargo noted that it would continue to offer its B777F rotations to destinations in North and South America and on the route to Tel Aviv (TLV) in combination with Cairo (CAI) in the summer flight schedule.
On short- and medium-haul routes, Lufthansa Cargo continues to offer more than 50 weekly connections using two Airbus A321F aircraft.
By the end of July, the A321 freighter fleet will grow to four aircraft. Related adjustments and extensions to the flight schedule on short- and medium-haul routes are currently still being planned.
Increased demand in the Chinese market
"Looking at the Chinese market in particular, we are seeing an upturn in economic activity and thus also an increasing demand for reliable and quality transport solutions by airfreight for sensitive and high-value goods," said Ashwin Bhat, Lufthansa Cargo's chief commercial officer.
"Accordingly, we have specifically adapted the flight schedule to meet the demands of our customers. The extensive capabilities of our fleet give us more flexibility on intercontinental routes as well as in the short- and medium-haul network," Bhat added.
The summer flight schedule comes into effect on March 26, 2023.
In the 2023 summer flight schedule, cargo will be regularly transported on more than 7,000 flights a week operated by Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Eurowings Discover and SunExpress.
