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Lufthansa Halts Further Domestic Cuts After Germany Approves Air-Tax Rollback for 2026

The tax change eases cost pressure, prompting Lufthansa to keep threatened domestic links as labor talks pivot to pensions versus short‑haul fleet prospects.

Overview

  • The governing coalition will lower the Luftverkehrssteuer effective July 1, 2026, changing airlines’ cost outlook.
  • Lufthansa and Eurowings say they will not cancel additional domestic routes in the summer 2026 schedule, with links such as MunichMünster/Osnabrück and services at Dresden, Bremen, Hannover, Stuttgart and Hamburg preserved.
  • About 50 weekly feeder flights to Frankfurt and Munich will still be removed as frequency reductions, with airports remaining served at a lower cadence.
  • Lufthansa rejects calls for immediate ticket-price cuts, citing other fees and demand factors, while Condor highlights thin industry margins of roughly €5 profit per passenger.
  • In ongoing talks with Vereinigung Cockpit, Lufthansa rules out higher employer pension contributions and signals potential commitments tied to protecting the short‑haul fleet, as the union pauses immediate strike action.