Lufthansa Cargo eyes growth in 2014 as new planes arrive
Monday, 25 November 2013 00:00
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FRANKFURT (Reuters): Deutsche Lufthansa Cargo’s new freighters may deliver more than 5% capacity growth in 2014 if this year’s ‘hint’ of an upturn takes hold but otherwise they will just replace old planes, the company’s head said last week.
Lufthansa has ordered five new 777 freighters from Boeing as part of a 2 billion euro ($ 2.7 billion) investment in its Frankfurt hub that includes a new cargo centre. Four 777Fs will be in service by the middle of next year.
“For next year, we hope to increase our offer by 4-5% and are planning for growth. We could even grow by over 5% with the new planes, but we are flexible and will adapt to the market conditions,” Lufthansa Cargo chief executive Karl Ulrich Garnadt said.
“It’s no secret that freight markets have been weaker than we all expected this year. So this year the freight market will see only a hint of growth,” he said at an event to unveil the group’s first 777 freighter.
Lufthansa Cargo had originally expected cargo volumes to pick up in the latter part of 2013, but the continuing global downturn has caught global cargo players unawares. The German company said volumes fell 2.2% in the first nine months.
“We are seeing some signs of a pick-up in Asia and I hope that it’s not just a flash in the pan,” Garnadt said.
Two of the new 777Fs will be delivered this year, with two more to come in 2014 and the final one in 2015.
Lufthansa has an option to order five more of the planes, which cost about $ 300 million each at list prices.
Garnadt said the group would make a decision on whether to exercise that option in September 2014 at the earliest and that it would be entirely dependent on a pick-up in freight markets.
Lufthansa’s first 777F started service last week, flying to JFK in New York before continuing on to Atlanta.
