India is Lufthansa’s “latest favourite country,” and Air India is one of the two pillars of its growth strategy here, according to its CEO Carsten Spohr.
The airline is currently looking to expand its network here, with the possibility of Austrian Airlines returning to Delhi next year as Bengaluru being is already connected to Switzerland.
“Our India strategy is a two-fold -- one is to expand our Lufthansa Group metal into India. Bengaluru must be served from Switzerland once we have the airplanes. Think Delhi is ready for Austrian as well but it is a question of capacity,” Mr. Spohr said at a media round-table in Istanbul during the ongoing IATA Annual General Meeting 2023. The airline recently announced the reopening of Frankfurt- Hyderabad flights from January 16, 2024 after last serving the Indian city in 2011. It will also launch services between Munich and Bengaluru from November 3.
