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Tuesday, 27 September 2011

Lufthansa


Deutsche Lufthansa AG, [ˈdɔʏt͡ʃə ˈlʊfthanza]) is the flag carrier of Germany and the largest airline in Europe in terms of overall passengers carried. The name of the company is derived from Luft (the German word for "air"), and Hansa (after Hanseatic League, the powerful medieval trading group).
The airline is the world's fifth-largest airline in terms of overall passengers carried, operating services to 18 domestic destinations and 183 international destinations in 78 countries across Africa, Americas, Asia and Europe. Together with its partners Lufthansa services around 410 destinations. With over 722 aircraft it has the third-largest passenger airline fleet in the world when combined with its subsidiaries.
Lufthansa's registered office and corporate headquarters is in Deutz, Cologne, with its main operations base (Lufthansa Aviation Center [LAC]) and primary traffic hub at Frankfurt Airport in Frankfurt am Main with a second hub at Munich Airport. The majority of Lufthansa's pilots, ground staff, and flight attendants are based in Frankfurt.
Lufthansa is a founding member of Star Alliance, the world's largest airline alliance formed in 1997. The Lufthansa Group operates more than 500 aircraft and employs worldwide 105,261 people of 146 nationalities (31 December 2007). In 2008, 70.5 million passengers flew with Lufthansa (not including Germanwings, BMI, AUA, Brussels Airlines).


History

1920s–1930s: Early years
The company was founded on January 6, 1926 in Berlin, following a merger between "Deutsche Aero Lloyd" (DAL) and "Junkers Luftverkehr". The company's original name was Deutsche Luft Hansa Aktiengesellschaft. Lufthansa, as one word, has been used since 1933. On December 9, 1927, Deutsche Luft Hansa, on behalf of the German government, established an agreement with the Spanish government authorising an air service between the two countries. This included a capital investment to establish an airline that would eventually become Iberia.
Lufthansa Ju 52 "Otto Falke" with running engines at Belgrade-Dojno polje
Airport,Kingdom of Yugoslavia. 1941
In the years prior to World War II, the company pioneered routes to the Far East and across the North Atlantic and the South Atlantic, using a fleet of mostly Dornier, Junkers, Heinkel, Focke-Wulf and other German-designed aircraft. Lufthansa was the first airliner firm to establish a commercial trans-Atlantic air mail link between Europe and South America in the 1930s with air mail flown by Dornier Wal flying boats landing in mid-Atlantic where special converted seaplane tenders cruised, where the Wals were refueled and then catapulted back into the air for the flight to South America or back to West Africa. It was also actively involved in the establishment of a few South American airlines, particularly via its subsidiary Condor Syndikat. After the outbreak of war in 1939, Lufthansa was only able to maintain service to neutral countries. Early in the war, along with the Italian Transcontinental Airline (Linee Aeree Transcontinentali Italiane, or LATI), the company competed vigorously in South America. However, all service was suspended by Lufthansa following Germany's defeat in 1945.

1950s: Post-war reformation
This Convair 340 was Lufthansa's first postwar aircraft, delivered in August 1954
Lufthansa was recreated on January 6, 1953 as Aktiengesellschaft für Luftverkehrsbedarf (Luftag) and was renamed Deutsche Lufthansa Aktiengesellschaft on August 6, 1954. The "new" Lufthansa of 1953 is not the legal successor of the Lufthansa founded in 1926 and which existed during and before World War II. On April 1, 1955 Lufthansa resumed scheduled service within Germany using the Convair 340. International operations started on May 15, 1955, with flights to points in Europe, followed by service to New York on June 8 using Lockheed Super Constellations. South Atlantic routes were resumed in August 1956.
East Germany attempted to establish its own airline in the 1950s using the Lufthansa name, but this resulted in a dispute with West Germany, where the airline was already in operation. East Germany renamed its national airline to Interflug, which ceased operations in 1991. Lufthansa was banned from flying into West Berlin until the demise of the GDR regime.
Lufthansa was the launch customer for the Boeing 737,
and operated variants including the 737-300
1960s: Jetliner introduction
In 1958, Lufthansa placed an order for four Boeing 707s, used to start jet services from Frankfurt to New York in March 1960. Boeing 720s were later bought to back up the 707 fleet. In February 1961, Far East routes were extended beyond Bangkok, Thailand to Hong Kong and Tokyo. The cities of Lagos, Nigeria and Johannesburg, South Africa were added in 1962.
Lufthansa introduced the Boeing 727 into service in 1964 and in May of that same year they began the Polar route from Frankfurt to Tokyo. In February 1965, the company placed an order for twenty-one Boeing 737 medium-haul jets, which were introduced into service in 1968.
Lufthansa was the first customer to purchase and also bought the largest number of Boeing 737 aircraft, and was one of only four buyers of the new 737-100s (the others were NASA, Malaysia-Singapore Airlines and Avianca– while the NASA airframe was technically the first constructed, it was the last delivered and originally intended for delivery to Lufthansa). In doing so, Lufthansa became the first foreign launch customer for a Boeing commercial plane.

1970s–1980s: The wide-body era
Lufthansa operated the Airbus A300 from 1976 to 2009
The beginning of the wide-body era for Lufthansa was marked with the inaugural Boeing 747 flight on April 26, 1970. In 1971 Lufthansa began service to South America. In 1979, Lufthansa and Swissair were launch customers for the advanced new Airbus A310, with an order for twenty-five aircraft.
The company's fleet modernisation programme for the 1990s began on June 29, 1985 with an order for fifteen Airbus A320s and seven Airbus A300-600s. Ten Boeing 737-300s were ordered a few days later. All of the aircraft were delivered between 1987 and 1992. Lufthansa also bought Airbus A321, Airbus A340 and the Boeing 747-400.
Lufthansa adopted a new corporate identity in 1988. The fleet was given a new livery while cabins, city offices and airport lounges were redesigned.

1990s–2000s: Further expansion
On October 28, 1990, 25 days after reunification, Berlin became a Lufthansa destination again. On May 18, 1997 Lufthansa, Air Canada, Scandinavian Airlines, Thai Airways and United Airlines formed the Star Alliance, the world's first multilateral airline alliance.
Former Lufthansa headquarters in Cologne, Germany
In 2000 Air One became a partner airline of Lufthansa and nearly all Air One flights were code-shared with Lufthansa until the purchase of Air One by Alitalia. Lufthansa has a good track record for posting profits, even in 2001, after 9/11, the airline suffered a significant loss in profits but still managed to stay 'in the green'. While many other airlines announced layoffs (typically 20% of their workforce), Lufthansa retained its current workforce.
In June 2003, Lufthansa opened Terminal 2 at Munich's Franz Josef Strauß Airport to relieve its main hub, Frankfurt, which was suffering from capacity constraints. It is one of the first terminals in Europe partially owned by an airline.
On May 17, 2004, Lufthansa became the launch customer for the Connexion by Boeing in-flight online connectivity service.
On March 22, 2005 SWISS merged with Lufthansa Airlines. The merger included the provision that the majority shareholders (the Swiss government and large Swiss companies) be offered payment if Lufthansa's share price outperforms an airline index during the years following the merger. The two companies will continue to be run separately.
Lufthansa's A380
On December 6, 2006, Lufthansa placed an order for 20 Boeing 747-8 airliners, becoming the launch customer of the type. The airline is also the second European airline to operate the Airbus A380 (after Air France). Their first A380 was delivered on May 19, 2010.

Alliances and partnerships
Lufthansa is owned by private investors (88.52%), MGL Gesellschaft für Luftverkehrswerte (10.05%), Deutsche Postbank (1.03%) and Deutsche Bank (0.4%) and has 37,042 employees (at March 2007).
On December 14 Lufthansa and American low-cost airline Jetblue announced the beginning of a partnership initiated through the 19% stake purchase in Jetblue shares by Lufthansa. This is the first major ownership investment by a European carrier in an American carrier since the EU–U.S. Open Skies Agreement became effective in 2008.
Lufthansa was one of the first operators of the Airbus A340-300
In late 2007, the Lufthansa cargo hub dispute was started by Russia. Lufthansa was forced to relocate its cargo hub from Kazakhstan to Russia.
On August 28, 2008 Lufthansa and Brussels Airlines announced that they were negotiating joining together.
On September 15, 2008 it was jointly announced by both airlines that Lufthansa will acquire a 45% stake in Brussels Airlines with an option to acquire the remaining 55% from 2011. As a part of this deal Brussels Airlines will join Star Alliance. Brussels entered into the Star Alliance in December 2009.
Lufthansa BAe 146 RJ85.
On 28 October 2008, Lufthansa exercised its option to purchase a further 60% share in BMI (additionally to the 20% Lufthansa already owned), this resulted in a dispute with former owner Sir Michael Bishop, though. Both parties reached an agreement at the end of June 2009, so the acquisition could take place with effect from July 1, 2009. By acquiring the remaining 20% from Scandinavian Airlines Lufthansa has full control over BMI since November 1, 2009.

In November, Lufthansa and Austrian announced a deal in which Lufthansa will buy the majority stock from the Austrian government. The deal was completed in January 2009. In January 2009, Lufthansa announced that they are in serious talks with Scandinavian Airlines System about a merger between the two airlines but Lufthansa would have to make great changes to SAS before this is viable because of the financial state of Scandinavian Airlines System over the last few years. In May 2009, it announced that talks are occurring between about a "closer commercial co-operation" between the two companies, but that a takeover is not in Lufthansa's plans. Additionally, it announced that if British Airways was unable to complete its merger with Iberia Airlines, it would attempt to begin talks with the Spanish airline itself.
In 2010, Lufthansa was named in a European Commission investigation into price-fixing, but was not fined due to acting as a whistleblower.

Corporate affairs and identity
Lufthansa headquarters in Deutz, Cologne
Headquarters
Lufthansa's corporate headquarters are located in Cologne.
In 1971 Lawrence Fellows of The New York Times described the then-new headquarters building that Lufthansa occupied in Cologne as "gleaming." In 1986 terrorists bombed the headquarters of Lufthansa. No people received injuries as a result of the bombing.
In 2006 the builders laid the first stone to the new Lufthansa headquarters in Deutz, Cologne. By the end of 2007 Lufthansa planned to move 800 employees, including the company's finance department, to the new building.
Several Lufthansa departments are not located in the headquarters; instead they are located in the Lufthansa Aviation Center at Frankfurt International Airport. The departments include Corporate Communications, Investor Relations, and Media Relations.

Subsidiaries


Lufthansa and partner Air Canada aircraft at Munich Airport

Embraer of Lufthansa Cityline in Regionalcolours.
In addition to its main operation, Lufthansa has several subsidiaries, including:

Airline subsidiaries:
Air Dolomiti, an airline headquartered in Ronchi dei Legionari, Italy, wholly owned by Lufthansa.
Austrian Airlines, the national airline of Austria, based in Schwechat, Austria, wholly owned by Lufthansa.
British Midland International, a UK airline, wholly owned by Lufthansa.
Brussels Airlines, on July 1, 2009 Lufthansa acquired a 45% stake in the Belgian airline with an option to acquire the remaining 55% in 2011.
Edelweiss Air, the charter arm of Swiss International.
Eurowings a regional carrier, 49% owned by Lufthansa.
Germanwings, a former low-cost subsidiary of Eurowings, which is now wholly owned by Lufthansa.
Jade Cargo International, was established in October 2004. Lufthansa Cargo holds 25% and is co-owned by Shenzhen Airlines, which has a 51% stake, and DEG – Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH, a subsidiary of the German state-owned KfW bank – with 24%. It started operations in March 2005 with intra-Asian services. It is the first cargo airline in China with foreign ownership.
JetBlue Airways, an airline headquartered in New York, 19% owned by Lufthansa.
Lufthansa Cargo, flight logistics company, wholly owned by Lufthansa.
Lufthansa CityLine, a regional carrier, wholly owned by Lufthansa.
Lufthansa Italia, a new subsidiary which is operating flights out of Milan Malpensa to destinations across Europe, with a fleet of seven Airbus A319 aircraft. The new subsidiary is intended to capture a large size of the Milan market following major cutbacks by Alitalia as a result of its hub change to Rome Fiumicino Airport.
Luxair – Lufthansa holds a 13% stake.
SunExpress, airline based in Antalya, Turkey; 50% owned by Lufthansa (50% Turkish Airlines).
Swiss International Air Lines, an airline based in Basel wholly owned by Lufthansa.
Ukraine International Airlines, a Ukrainian airline, 22,52 % owned by UIA Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, a 100 % subsidiary of Austrian Airlines.
Other operations:


Two Airbus A380 and A Boeing 747 aircraft at Frankfurt Airport
Delvag, an insurance company specialising in air transport
Global Load Control, world leader in remote weight and balance services
LSG Sky Chefs, the world's largest airline caterer, which accounts for one third of the world's airline meals
Lufthansa Commercial Holding, in which Lufthansa holds a 19% stake. LCH contains over 400 service and finance companies of which Lufthansa holds shares
Lufthansa Flight Training, a provider of flight crew training services to various airlines and the main training arm for the Airline's own pilots
Lufthansa Regional, a brand operated by an alliance of several small regional airlines, including Lufthansa CityLine
Lufthansa Systems, largest European aviation IT provider
Lufthansa Technik, aircraft maintenance providers

Brand history
The Lufthansa logo, an encircled crane in flight, was created in 1918. It was part of the livery of the first German airline, Deutsche Luftreederei GmbH (DLR), which began air service on February 5, 1919. The stylised crane was designed by Professor Otto Firle. In 1926 Lufthansa adopted this symbol from Aero Lloyd AG, which merged with DLR in 1923. The original creator of the name Lufthansa is believed to be F.A. Fischer von Puturzyn. In 1925 he published a book entitled "Luft-Hansa" which examined the options open to aviation policymakers at the time. Luft Hansa was the name given to the new airline which resulted from the merger of Junkers Luftverkehr AG and Deutscher Aero Lloyd.

Destinations

Further information: Lufthansa destinations

Codeshare agreements
Besides fellow Star Alliance members, Lufthansa has codeshare agreements with the following airlines (as of October 2010):
Air Malta
Air Moldova
Avianca
Cimber Sterling
Cirrus Airlines
Ethiopian Airlines
Jat Airways
JetBlue Airways
Luxair
Qatar Airways
TACA Airlines
Lufthansa also has codeshare agreements with fellow Star Alliance Members:
Adria Airways
Aegean Airlines
Air Canada
Air China
Air India (future)
Air New Zealand
All Nippon Airways
Asiana Airlines
Austrian Airlines
Blue1
bmi
Brussels Airlines
Continental Airlines
Croatia Airlines
EgyptAir
LOT Polish Airlines
SAS Scandinavian Airlines
Singapore Airlines
South African Airways
Spanair
Swiss International Air Lines
TAM Airlines
TAP Portugal
Thai Airways International
Turkish Airlines
United Airlines
US Airways

Fleet


Airbus A319-100 taxiing after landing

Airbus A320

Airbus A321

Boeing 737-500

Airbus A340-600

Boeing 747-400

Boeing 727-200 in 1981

Lufthansa's first A380 (D-AIMA)


As of December 2010, the Lufthansa fleet consists of the following aircraft with an average age of 13.1 years:
Lufthansa Fleet
Aircraft In Service Orders Passengers
F C Y
Total
Airbus A319-100 25 8 0 24 102 126
Airbus A320-200 46 26 0 32 114 146
Airbus A321-100 20 0 0 31 155 186
Airbus A321-200 24 16
Airbus A330-300 15 3 8 48 165 221
Airbus A340-300 26 0 8 48 165 221
8 36 197 241
0 44 222 266
Airbus A340-600 24 0 8 60 238 306
0 66 279 345
Airbus A380-800 4 11 8 98 420 526
Boeing 737-300 33 0 0 18 106 124
Boeing 737-500 30 0 0 18 90 108
Boeing 747-400 29 0 16 80 234 330
66 279 345
52 310 378
Boeing 747-8I 0 20 TBA
Bombardier CS100 0 30 TBA
Total 276 114

Fleet history
Over the years, Lufthansa operated the following aircraft types:
This transport-related list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.
Lufthansa Mainline past fleet since 1955
Aircraft Introduced Retired Notes
Airbus A300 1976
1987 1984
2009
Airbus A310 1984 2005
Airbus A319 1996
Airbus A320 1989
Airbus A321 1994
Airbus A330-200 2002 2006
Airbus A330-300 2004
Airbus A340-200 1993 2006
Airbus A340-300 1993
Airbus A340-600 2003
Airbus A380 2010
Boeing 707 1960 1984 also used in cargo configuration
Boeing 720 1961 1965
Boeing 727 1964 1993 could be converted into cargo aircraft
Boeing 737-100 1968 1982 launch customer, dubbed City Jet
Boeing 737-200 1982 1997
Boeing 737-300 1986
Boeing 737-400 1992 1998
Boeing 737-500 1990
Boeing 747-100 1970 1979 also used in cargo configuration
Boeing 747-200 1971 2004 also used in cargo configuration
Boeing 747-400 1989
Convair CV-340/440 1955 1968 also used in cargo configuration
Lockheed Super Constellation/Starliner 1955 1967
Douglas DC-3 1955 1960
Douglas DC-4 1957 ? cargo aircraft
Douglas DC-8 1968 1996 cargo aircraft
McDonnell Douglas DC-10 1974 1994
McDonnell Douglas MD-11 1998 cargo aircraft
Vickers Viscount 1958 1971 also used in cargo configuration

Airbus A380


Lufthansa Airbus A380 being towed to the hangar after testing, ready for its first scheduled flight on the 6th of June 2010 to Johannesburg
On 6 December 2001 Lufthansa announced an order for 15 Airbus A380 superjumbos with 10 more options. This deal was confirmed on the 20th of December 2001. The A380 fleet will be used for long haul flights from Frankfurt exclusively. The first aircraft that arrived on May 19, 2010 has been named "Frankfurt am Main". The first route of the Airbus A380 with Lufthansa is Frankfurt to Tokyo, the first flight was on June 11, 2010. The second A380, named "München" (Munich) was delivered in July 2010, and the third, named "Peking" was delivered in August 2010; Lufthansa expects four deliveries in 2010. Additionally to Tokyo, Lufthansa operates the A380 on routes to Beijing (since 1 September 2010) and Johannesburg (since 12 September 2010). The airline announced that it will launch the A380 to New York on 8 February 2011, it will use JFK instead of Newark, the reason being Newark Airport is unable to handle the A380 at this time.

Aircraft Naming Conventions
In September 1960 the Lufthansa Boeing 707 (D-ABOC), which would serve the Frankfurt-New York intercontinental route, was christened Berlin after the divided city of Berlin by then-mayor Willy Brandt. Following the Berlin, other Lufthansa 707 planes were named "Hamburg", "Frankfurt," "München" and "Bonn." With these names, the company established a tradition of naming the planes in its fleet for German cities and towns or federal states, with a general rule of thumb that the airplane make, size, or route would correspond roughly to the relative size or importance of the city or town it was named after.
This tradition has continued to this day, with two notable exceptions until 2010. The Airbus A340-300 (D-AIFC Gander/Halifax) was named after Gander and Halifax, two Canadian cities along the standard flight path from Europe to North America. It became the first Lufthansa airplane named after a non-German city. The name is meant to commemorate the hospitality of the communities of Gander and Halifax, which served as improvised safe havens for the passengers and crew of the multitude of international aircraft unable to return to their originating airports after the closing of the North American airspace in the days following the terror attacks of September 11, 2001.
The other aircraft not named after a German city was the Airbus 321-100 (D-AIRA), which was designated Finkenwerder in honor of the collaborative Airbus facility in the borough of Hamburg-Finkenwerder, where parts of the Airbus models are manufactured.
In February 2010 the Lufthansa company announced that the first two Airbus A380 in its fleet would be named Frankfurt am Main and München, following its naming tradition. However, the two subsequent A380 planes are named after Lufthansa A380 destination cities. The third A380 delivered to Lufthansa (D-AIMC) is named Peking, the German version of Beijing, inscribed on the plane in both German and Mandarin characters. The fourth A380 (D-AIMD) is named Tokio, in accordance with the German spelling of Tokyo.

Vintage aircraft restoration
Lufthansa Technik, the airline's maintenance arm, restored a Junkers Ju 52/3m built in 1936 to airworthiness; this aircraft was in use on the 10-hour Berlin to Rome route, across the Alps, in the 1930s. Lufthansa is now restoring a Lockheed Super Constellation, using parts from three such aircraft bought at auction. Lufthansa's Super Constellations and L1649 "Starliners" served routes such as Hamburg-Madrid-Dakar-Caracas-Santiago. Lufthansa Technik recruits retired employees and volunteers for skilled labor. Lufthansa sells aviation enthusiasts rides on the restored aircraft.

Cabin

Intercontinental
First Class: Lufthansa First Class is offered on all long-haul aircraft (Airbus A330-300, A340-300, A340-600 and A380-800, Boeing 747-400). Each seat converts to a two meter bed, includes laptop power outlets, as well as entertainment facilities. Meals are available on demand. Lufthansa offers dedicated First Class check in counters at most airports, and offers dedicated First Class lounges in Frankfurt and Munich, as well as a dedicated First Class Terminal in Frankfurt. Arriving passengers have the option of using Lufthansa's First Class arrival facilities, as well as the new Welcome Lounge. Lufthansa has introduced a new First Class product aboard the Airbus A380 and plans to gradually introduce it on all of its long-haul aircraft.
Business Class: Lufthansa's long-haul Business Class is offered on all long-haul aircraft. Each seat converts to a two meter lie-flat bed, includes laptop power outlets and entertainment facilities. Lufthansa offers dedicated Business Class check in counters at all airports, as well as dedicated Business Class lounges at most airports, or contract lounges at other airports, as well as the Lufthansa Welcome Lounge upon arrival in Frankfurt.
Economy Class: Lufthansa's long-haul Economy Class is offered on all long-haul aircraft. All have a 31" seat pitch except the Airbus A340s, which have a 32" seat pitch. Passengers receive meals, as well as free drinks. In 2007, Lufthansa began installing personal Audio-Video-On-Demand (AVOD) screens in Economy Class. All long-haul aircraft have been refitted, except the Boeing 747s.

European domestic
Business Class: Lufthansa's short-haul Business Class offers a 31"-32" seatpitch and is available on all A319, A320, A321 and B737 aircraft. Passengers receive meals and drinks, as well as access to dedicated Business Class check-in counters, and Lufthansa Business Class lounges. These aircraft are used on selected medium-haul flights. Inflight entertainment is not offered on any short-haul flights.
Economy Class: Lufthansa's short-haul Economy Class offers a 31" pitch and is available on all A319, A320, A321 and B737 aircraft. Passengers receive free beverages, and snacks or meals. Inflight entertainment is not offered on any short-haul flights.
In July 2010, Lufthansa announced a move to a new cabin with lighter seating in its European fleet, bringing capacity improvements equivalent to buying twelve new A320s.
In December 2010, Lufthansa announced a new slimline seat developed by Recaro, which would allow higher seat densities and/or more legroom for passengers; Lufthansa has ordered 32000 of these seats, to be installed in 2011.

Lounges
Lounge Access – Class Access – Status Notes Number on Network
First Class Terminal First Class HON Circle FRA only 1
First Class Lounge First Class HON Circle FRA and MUC only 3
Senator Lounge First Class Senator (or higher)
Star Alliance Gold 30
Business Lounge Business Class (or higher) Frequent Traveller (or higher) 26
Welcome Lounge Business Class (or higher) Frequent Traveller (or higher) FRA only
Intercontinental passengers only
No Star Alliance Gold 1
Lufthansa operates four types of lounges: First Class, Senator, Business, and Welcome Lounges. Each departure lounge is accessible both through travel class, or Miles and More / Star Alliance status; the Welcome Lounge is limited to arriving premium Lufthansa passengers only.

First Class Terminal
Lufthansa operates a First Class Terminal at Frankfurt Airport. The first terminal of its kind; access is limited only to departing Lufthansa First Class, and HON Circle members. Approximately 200 staff care for approximately 300 passengers per day in the terminal, which features a full-service restaurant, full bar, cigar lounge, relaxation rooms and offices, as well as bath facilities. Guests are driven directly to their departing flight by Mercedes-Benz S-Class, Porsche Panamera or Mercedes-Benz Viano.

Miles & More

Main article: Miles & More
Lufthansa's frequent-flyer program is called Miles & More, and is shared among several European airlines, including Austrian Airlines, Adria Airways, Croatia Airlines, LOT Polish Airlines, Luxair, Swiss International Air Lines, and Brussels Airlines. Miles & More members may earn miles on Lufthansa flights and Star Alliance partner flights, as well as through Lufthansa credit cards, and purchases made through the Lufthansa shops. Status within Miles & More is determined by miles flown during one calendar year with specific partners. Membership levels include: Basic (no minimal threshold), Frequent Traveller (Silver, 35,000 mile threshold), Senator (Gold, 100,000 mile threshold, 130,000 for German residents), and HON Circle (Black, 600,000 mile threshold over two calendar years). All non-basic Miles & More status levels offer lounge access and executive bonus miles, with the higher levels offering more exclusive benefits.

Accidents and incidents

Hull-loss Accidents: 7 with a total of 182 fatalities since 1955 (the new Lufthansa only)
11 January 1959– a Lockheed L-1049G Super Constellation en route from Hamburg, Germany crashed into the beach in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil while descending in heavy rain. 36 people died, 3 survived.
28 January 1966– Lufthansa Flight 005, a Convair CV 440 crashed on landing after an approach in low visibility to Bremen, Germany. All 46 passengers and crew on board were killed.
20 November 1974 – Lufthansa Flight 540, a Boeing 747-130 crashed shortly after take-off in Nairobi. 59 of 157 on board lost their lives. This was the first crash involving a Boeing 747.
26 July 1979– Lufthansa Cargo Flight 527, a Boeing 707-330C crashed after take-off in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, killing 3 crew members.
14 September 1993– Lufthansa Flight 2904, an Airbus A320 flying from Frankfurt to Warsaw, Poland with 70 people, overran runway 11 and crashed into an earth embankment located 90 m beyond the end of the runway. The co-pilot and a passenger died. Universität Bielefeld (German)
Hijackings
13 October 1977– Lufthansa Flight 181, a Boeing 737, was hijacked and the captain murdered, but all other crew members and all the passengers were freed safely when a German counter-terrorism force (GSG 9) stormed the aircraft in Mogadishu, Somalia. One hijacker survived.
11 February 1993– Lufthansa Flight 592 from Frankfurt to Cairo with 94 passengers and 10 crew members was hijacked by 20-year old Nebiu Zewolde Demeke, who diverted it to the United States with the intent of securing the right of asylum. Demeke, who was being deported back to his native Ethiopia, surrendered to authorities upon arrival at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City. No passengers or crew were injured or killed.
27 July 2010- Lufthansa Cargo flight 8460 A Lufthansa Cargo aircraft crashed in Riyadh's King Khaled International Airport in Saudi Arabia. There were no casualties and both pilots were treated at a hospital. A fire broke out during the crash and the plane was reportedly split in half.



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