Lufthansa Weighs More Longhaul Flights as Iran Upends Rivals
(Bloomberg) — Deutsche Lufthansa AG is preparing to offer more flights to Asia and Africa as the war in Iran sidelines Middle Eastern rivals, highlighting how the regional conflict stands to reshape global travel patterns.
Europe’s largest aviation group said it’s seen a sharp rise in bookings in recent days for the regions, prompting the group to study additional frequencies to destinations including Singapore, India, China and South Africa.
“The war in the Middle East proves once again how exposed air traffic is and how vulnerable it remains,” Chief Executive Officer Carsten Spohr said at a press conference after reporting earnings. “The massive concentration of global traffic flows via the Gulf hubs is increasingly proving to be a geopolitical Achilles’ heel.”
Lufthansa can draw on aircraft freed up by suspending destinations in Middle East and due to seasonal slack in the winter schedule, allowing the carrier to mount extra flights at short notice, Spohr told reporters. It will announce more flights “within the next three days,” with destinations including Shanghai, Delhi, Cape Town and Riyadh under consideration.
At the same time, Lufthansa cautioned that the conflict has injected uncertainty into its outlook.
While group expects 2026 earnings to again be “significantly above” last year’s and sales to rise, there’s increased volatility in oil markets due to disruptions to supply chains in the Strait of Hormuz.
“We are relatively better protected against sharply rising prices” than most competitors thanks to a roughly 80% fuel hedging ratio for the year, Spohr said.
Lufthansa rose as much as 3.9% in Frankfurt. They were little changed over the last twelve months through Thursday’s close.
Lufthansa is the first major global network carrier to outline how the conflict is reshaping demand. Global aviation has been shaken up since last week’s hostilities began, forcing carriers like Emirates and Qatar Airways to effectively suspend operations.
Emirates said on Friday that it aims to return to full service in coming days.
The weeklong suspension stands to change the dynamic for longhaul services, with Asian carriers and European airlines like Lufthansa set to benefit after long seeing the Persian-Gulf rivals siphon off business via their Middle Eastern hubs.
Airlines also face longer routings to skirt crisis regions, which Spohr expects to push up fares across the industry.
The geopolitical tensions come as Spohr pushes to improve efficiency in a crowded European market by bundling some administrative functions and cutting 4,000 administrative jobs by 2030.
Read: Lufthansa Plans 4,000 Job Cuts in Bid to Protect Margin Goal
In 2025, group adjusted earnings before interest and tax rose to €2 billion ($2.3 billion), beating the average analyst estimate compiled by Bloomberg, while revenue rose in line with expectations.
The group’s passenger airlines, which include Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and Swiss, generated an operating profit of €1.1 billion in 2025, up 4% from the previous year. Lower demand for travel in the US weighed on unit revenues in the third and fourth quarter.
Lufthansa Airlines’ turnaround showed progress, with the company predicting a cumulative gross earnings effect of around €1.5 billion this year, rising to €2.5 billion by 2028. Unit-cost growth is expected to be limited to half the inflation rate.
One main driver is the fleet modernization — which will reach its peak this year and next — with near-weekly arrivals of new aircraft such as the Boeing Co. 787. Spohr is also shifting more short-haul flying to lower-cost units such as Discover and Lufthansa City Airlines.
Besides the flight suspensions in the Middle East, Lufthansa also had to cancel 800 flights in February during a one-day strike by pilots and cabin crew in response to stalled contract negotiations. A recent ballot vote by a regional carrier signaled there may be more disruption on the horizon.
Lufthansa also runs a cargo unit and maintenance subsidiary Lufthansa Technik. Both units could benefit from current disruptions, Spohr said, with cargo seeing stronger freight demand and Technik potentially more defense-related work.
The latter was hit by about €30 million in US steel and aluminum tariffs last year. After the recent US Supreme Court ruling, Chief Financial Officer Till Streichert said the company will explore seeking a refund.
(Updates with CEO, CFO comments starting in fourth paragraph.)
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