Lufthansa and Air China enter into code-sharing agreement Scheduled services Between Frankfurt-Beijing/Shanghai to be expanded significantly

Lufthansa German Airlines and Air China today took an important step towards strengthening their worldwide partner strategies. Juergen Weber, Chairman and CEO of Lufthansa Group, and Wang Li An, Chairman of Air China Group and President of Air China, signed a code-sharing agreement today in Beijing that will be implemented with the launch of the airline’s winter schedule on October 29 this year. The two airlines will then be offering flights between Frankfurt and Beijing as well as Frankfurt and Shanghai under shared flight numbers.

Wang Li An remarks, “Today we choose to cooperate because we both have the desire to do so. Air China makes cooperation with other airlines as its long-term strategy of development. The cooperation with Lufthansa is an important step in this aspect.”

“For Lufthansa, its new cooperation is an important step in its partner strategy.” Juergen Weber comments, “We are thrilled to have found in Air China such a strong partner in one of the world’s largest growth markets for commercial airline traffic. We would like our next step to be the opening up of inner-Chinese routes from Shanghai and Beijing for Lufthansa in close cooperation with our new partner.”

For both airlines’ customers, the new agreement will mean a significant expansion in services between Frankfurt and two Chinese gateway cities of Beijing and Shanghai. Air China’s nine weekly flights (daily Beijing-Frankfurt, two Shanghai-Frankfurt) will be operating under Lufthansa flight numbers. Lufthansa’s 13 flights from Frankfurt to the Middle Kingdom every week (seven to Beijing, six to Shanghai) will also carry Air China codes.

Air China will also extend its flight services by adding its own flight numbers onto Lufthansa flights from Frankfurt to Hamburg, Berlin and Munich. Frequent Flyer programme members of Lufthansa and Air China will be able to earn miles on all code-share flights.

The cooperation between the two airlines will also include the following:-

· CRS reservation network system link-up;

· Seamless passenger services with through check-in – passengers only need to check-in once at the starting point of their travel, where they will receive boarding passes for all segments of their trip;

· Joint product quality enhancement.

The cooperation between Lufthansa and Air China actually has a long history to it. The two airlines have been enjoying an extremely successful technical partnership since 1989 when they founded their joint venture AMECO to provide complete aircraft servicing and maintenance.

One can also find further examples of the constructive cooperation between Lufthansa and Air China in both the cargo sector and in Beijing Air Catering Ltd., a company in which Lufthansa catering subsidiary LSG holds a stake. The new code-sharing agreement is intended by Lufthansa to expand the productive relationship it has had with the Chinese carrier to include passenger service as well.

Air China is the national flag carrier and one of the major airlines in China. In its home market, the airline has an extensive network of inner-Chinese services centered in Beijing. Last year, Air China carried more than 6½ million passengers. It offers service to seven destinations in Europe: Besides Frankfurt, it also has regularly scheduled flights to Copenhagen, Stockholm, London, Milan, Moscow, Paris and Rome. The passengers can enjoy Air China’s high quality service in 49 domestic cities and 31 international cities around the globe. The Asian carrier has been also at the head of the class when it comes to safety, holding a flawless record without a single accident since its crew began to fly in 1955.

Lufthansa is a fully privatised group of companies with over 200 subsidiaries and affiliated companies worldwide. Lufthansa is one of the leading companies in the aviation industry. It offers a wide range of air transport services including passenger airlines, tourism, freight operations, flight catering, aircraft technical maintenance, ground service and information technology. It was recently placed fourth in the airline section of Fortune magazine's list of the world's most admired companies and corporations.

Lufthansa German Airlines is one of the world's leading international airlines. The airline route network encompasses 340 destinations in 91 countries in the Summer timetable starting 26 March 2000. As one of the founding members of the Star Alliance, Lufthansa has developed one of the most comprehensive alliance networks in the industry, with partnerships serving all six continents.