Lufthansa is set to axe flights between Frankfurt and Shenyang, reports airliners.de (German only).
The German flag carrier currently operates a three-times-weekly service between the two destinations, but will discontinue it from October 27.
The news comes following the Lufthansa Group’s first half-year financial results, which revealed that bookings for long-haul routes have fallen significantly, with Asia showing a “particularly weak performance” in light of European instability.
Signs that this route particularly was in trouble include fare prices dropping to as low as €600 for a round-trip economy ticket.
As reported by Buying Business Travel, the group’s chairman and chief executive Carsten Spohr said: “The terrorist attacks in Europe and also the increasing political and economic uncertainties are having a tangible impact on passenger volumes.
“The forward bookings, in particular for our long-haul services to Europe have declined significantly. We expect the high pricing pressure to continue.”
Spohr stated that Lufthansa will be scaling back its growth plans and instead focusing on efficiency.
Lufthansa passengers will still be able to reach Shenyang via the airline’s Star Alliance partner Air China, which flies from Beijing and Chengdu.
As an industrial centre in China, Shenyang is home to numerous major companies and a large community of Germans due to the presence of BMW, which operates two manufacturing plants in the city.
According to Aero Telegraph (German only), the automobile manufacturer’s chief executive Harald Krueger is said to have personally requested Carsten Spohr to retain the flights to Shenyang, to no avail.
In a statement to the German news outlet, a Lufthansa spokesperson said: “We analyse our flight network on a regular basis. This is a normal process. And if a route does not make economic sense, we have to act.”
For more information, visit lufthansa.com
Clement Huang
