Alex McWhirter looks at how new services can benefit business travellers
Munich-Tashkent
UK travellers wishing to visit the capital of Uzbekistan with a European airline have a limited choice. Right now there are only two realistic options – Czech Airlines via Prague, or Turkish Airlines via Istanbul. While various Russian carriers offer connections via Moscow, these can involve an airport change in Moscow, so a visa might be needed.
But soon there will be an alternative – Lufthansa’s three-times weekly service is set to commence on March 28, connecting in Munich, and is aimed at the business market.
Tashkent boasts a population of 2.2 million, rising to four million if the airport’s catchment area is included. Potential customers for Lufthansa’s new route are government organisations such as the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the UN. All these have staff using routes to Europe and North America.
Firms operating in Uzbekistan include Glaxo Smith Kline, Siemens, BASF and British American Tobacco, while John Deere and Nokia plan to set up there.
The product
Unlike its rivals, which serve Tashkent with regular aircraft from their own fleets, Lufthansa is chartering a
B737-800 from luxury Swiss carrier Privatair. In an all-economy layout, a B737 can hold up to 180 passengers, but Privatair’s B737-800 accommodates 108 passengers – 24 in business, in angled lie-flat seating, and 84 in economy. The aircraft is specially designed to operate the 4,485km between Munich and Tashkent non-stop in six hours and ten minutes.
Thomas Kluhr, Lufthansa’s group representative and head of hub management in Munich, says: “Our passengers will enjoy very personal comfort and service on board the B737-800 owing to the limited number of seats. We will be offering long-haul standards of service, including Star Chef in-flight menus.”
Flights will depart Munich every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday, returning from Tashkent the following day. Flight LH644 leaves at 2015 and arrives in Tashkent at 0505, while flight LH645 returns at 0645 and gets back to Munich at 1015.
From London Heathrow, Lufthansa will be charging return fares of £1,117 for economy and £1,972 for business class. Overall journey times in either direction are nine hours, 40 minutes.
The connections
The new service will use Munich’s T2, the airport’s Star Alliance terminal, which is arguably one of the best in Europe in terms of ease of use, spaciousness and cleanliness. T2 has a minimum connecting time of only 30 minutes but travellers are wise to allow longer in case of any problems.
Crucial to the new route’s success will be the range of connections offered at Munich to destinations in Europe and North America. Here are three examples:
- From Heathrow the connecting service is LH4757 at 1525, which reaches Munich at 1815. The inbound connection is LH4754 at 1125, arriving into Heathrow at 1225.
- Out of New York JFK, passengers would take LH411 at 1735. This arrives at 0810 so passengers will need a 12-hour layover, perhaps at the Kempinski hotel located in the terminal. The return connection is perfect, with LH410 departing Munich at 1130 to reach JFK at 1440.
- Out of Milan Malpensa there is flight LH3905 at 1710, which reaches Munich at 1815. On the return, LH3900 departs Munich at 1105 and arrives at Malpensa at 1215.
The European competition
For UK travellers, Turkish Airlines is the best alternative based on price and connections. It flies five times a week and from Heathrow it charges return economy fares ranging between £457 and £826, with business class at £1,452. The best overall times via Istanbul are nine hours, 50 minutes out of London and 11 hours, five minutes returning from Tashkent.
Czech Airlines is not so convenient. It flies twice a week and passengers departing Heathrow have a four- or five-hour transit in Prague. In addition, the Prague-Tashkent sector does not operate non-stop on some days of the week.
Strangely, the carrier does not post through fares on its website, but online agent opodo.co.uk displays return prices of £695 for economy and £1,082 for business class.
