Lufthansa (LH, Frankfurt International) is considering outsourcing the operation of fourteen A340-300s to Swiss operator PrivatAir (Switzerland) (Geneva) in a bid to circumvent anticipated trade union resistance to its budget long haul plans.
Lufthansa plans to refit up to fourteen A340-300s with leisure-oriented cabins featuring 18 Business Class seats, 19 Premium Economy seats and 261 Economy seats for use on flights to leisure destinations such as Las Vegas Harry Reid and Mauritius beginning in November 2015.
The airline claims that without a streamlining of costs on these routes, it would not be able to effectively compete with other carriers.
Aside from the project's operational aspect, Lufthansa says staff overheads on the routes will also have to be reduced; a move that could lead to a stand-off with unions and eventually more financially crippling strikes.
While it was able to reach an agreement with cabin crew union UFO earlier this month, management has been unable to reach a similar deal with pilots' union Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) that would have required pilots to work longer hours before receiving overtime benefits.
According to Germany's Spiegel magazine, it is for this reason that management is now considering outsourcing its leisure A340 operations to PrivatAir with the Swiss carrier operating the aircraft on Lufthansa's behalf and with its crew.
While Lufthansa has confirmed plans to use the A340s on budget flights, it has not commented on the Spiegel report.
Lufthansa has, over the last six months, outlined a series of ambitious budget-oriented projects aimed at regaining market share lost to the likes of Ryanair (FR, Dublin International) and easyJet (London Luton) in the regional European market and to Emirates (EK, Dubai International), Qatar Airways (QR, Doha Hamad International), Etihad Airways (EY, Abu Dhabi International) in the long haul intercontinental market.
