Lufhansa chief has "open door" for links with Gulf carriers

Lufthansa chief executive Christoph Franz is not ruling out closer links with Gulf airlines, he said at a side meeting at the IATA annual general meeting in Cape Town which formally opened this morning.
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Questions about relationships between the German national carrier and the Dubai airline have gathered pace since Emirates Airline president Tim Clark has said he would not rule out an alliance with German national carrier Lufthansa despite years of disagreement with the government over landing rights.

Last month Clark said he was open to a joint venture with Lufthansa while stressing "there is nothing on the table now.
"What I am saying is, would I shut the door to that kind of a thing? We are open to a commercial deal – like we have with Qantas – a well-understood partnership that delivers a value to both carriers without any distortion," he said.
This is not the first time the two airlines have got close. Emirates pursued a partnership with Lufthansa in 1992, with discussions getting "quite a long way down the road" according to Clark. "Suddenly Lufthansa pulled the rug. They discontinued negotiations overnight and left me high and dry," he said.
In recent years Lufthansa has strongly opposed the growth of Emirates across Europe and actively stopped the Dubai carrier from flying to the German capital, Berlin. Emirates former executive vice chairman Maurice Flanagan has also accused Lufthansa of encouraging Canada to block Emirates’ expansion into the North American country.
But in Cape Town last night Franz said the door is open to future tie-ups. He said relationships with the Gulf carriers was much stronger than the media sometimes suggests and that that there were already tie ups with Emirates in the UK for example with catering and services.
“We have to change to adapt to the new world,” Franz said. “You have to be strong enough to reshape yourself.
“We share the view that the old perception, that the Gulf carriers developing their network exclusively on their own, is modifying. We are taking a good look at what is happening but we don’t feel we have to act immediately. We are constantly reviewing our position.”
Part of that review is also believed to include closer links with its Star Alliance partner Turkish Airlines as a way of competing against the Gulf challenge – highlighted even more by Air Berlin’s involvement with Abu Dhabi’s Etihad, and Qatar Airways steps to join the One World Alliance.
Franz said that Lufthansa is continuing to invest a million euros a day on improvements to its offer, particularly with changes to business class.
Lufthansa CEO Christoph Franz at IATA AGM today